CFTC Talks

This week on CFTC Talks, we speak with fintech innovation expert Jo Ann Barefoot from Barefoot Innovation and co-founder of Hummingbird Fintech. Ms. Barefoot has been a regulator, a Senate staffer, and industry consultant and a volunteer in the financial regulatory and consumer movement space. We discuss why she believes we’ve been doing it all wrong and what are the best practices for these areas: fintech, regtech and innovation.

This week on CFTC Talks, we speak International Monetary Fund Deputy Director of the Monetary and Capital Markets Department Fabio Natalucci. We discuss the findings of the IMF’s latest Global Financial Stability Report and what are the biggest risks to the global financial markets. Italy, China and global trade are some of the topics we dive into.

This week on CFTC Talks, we speak with CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo and CFTC Chief Economist Bruce Tuckman. We review their white paper, “Swaps Regulation Version 2.0.” At the ISDA annual meeting, the Chairman states, "This white paper is economy-focused. And our role at the CFTC is to bring a market-focused approach. Our focus is what's in the best interest of the markets. Our mission is market integrity and market health."

This week on CFTC Talks, we speak with iCapital CEO Lawrence Calcano on the state of the alternative investment sector. We cover how iCapital chooses the funds they invest in, the way they use fintech and what are interesting sectors for future investment. This is part 2 of a 2 part series with Mr. Calcano.

This week on CFTC Talks, we speak with iCapital CEO Lawrence Calcano on the state of the alternative investment sector. We cover how iCapital chooses the funds they invest in, the way they use fintech and what are interesting sectors for future investment. This will be a two part series with part 1 released on Friday and part 2 released the week after.

This week on CFTC Talks, CFTC's Dan Gorfine and I bring on UK’s Financial Conduct Authority’s Nick Cook, head of RegTech and Advanced Analytics. We cover a wide range of fintech issues from blockchain to regulatory technology to AI. Mr. Cook and FCA create hackathons with industry and government to solve challenging technology issues. This will be a two part series with part 1 released on Thursday and part 2 released on Friday.

This week on CFTC Talks, CFTC's Dan Gorfine and I bring on UK’s Financial Conduct Authority’s Nick Cook, head of RegTech and Advanced Analytics. We cover a wide range of fintech issues from blockchain to regulatory technology to AI. Mr. Cook and FCA create hackathons with industry and government to solve challenging technology issues. This will be a two part series with part 1 released on Thursday and part 2 released on Monday.

This week on CFTC Talks, we bring on Mike Englund, Chief Economist at Action Economics. We discuss his outlook for GDP (+3.4% for next 2 quarters), capex, and when he thinks the next recession will begin. Also, we dissect how corporate debt is going to be impacted by the higher US interest rates and the large amount of new US Treasury securities.

This week on CFTC Talks, CFTC's Dan Gorfine and I bring on Andreesen Horowitz' lead on fintech investments, Alex Rampell. We cover a wide range of fintech issues from crypto currencies to blockchain (what it's not) and AI.

This week on CFTC Talks, we discuss China and US Trade.

This week on CFTC Talks, we bring on CFTC Director of Enforcement James McDonald. We cover the DOE’s approach to precious metals, enforcement of the CEA and recent cases.

This week on CFTC Talks, we bring on an expert in the non-virtual currency world known as foreign exchange. Deutsche Bank’s George Saravelos Deutsche Bank is the Global Co-head FX Research in London. We discuss the outlook for the US dollar against the major currency pairs. We try to solve the conundrum of why the currency markets have been less volatile than the equity and bond markets. And why the Federal Reserve and the US Treasury are critical for understanding investor outlook on the US dollar.

This week on CFTC Talks, we have University of Illinois Prof. Scott Irwin, an expert in speculation in the commodity markets. We talk about how trading and speculation have radically changed over the last 5 years and why Ag prices remain low. Also, we discuss his recent paper, “Trilogy for trouble shooting convergence: manipulation, structural imbalance and storage rates.”

This week on CFTC Talks, we bring on special guest USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue. We cover his background, his priorities and strategic goals for the USDA and Ag prices. Also, we discuss the rapid innovation occurring on farms and why more is coming fast. Secretary Perdue has been to 33 states recently and shares what he found out during his visits.

This week on CFTC Talks, we bring on PwC’s Julien Courbe, who leads their US Financial Services Advisory. He advises C-suite executives at major financial services institutions on how to address issues related to growth and performance improvement, digital transformation, financial crime and regulatory compliance, as well as technology and operations effectiveness. We talk fintech, blockchain and AI. What are the challenges and predictions for the future of digitized financial services?