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CFTC Division Issues No-Action Relief to Phantom Technologies for Trading Software

CFTC Division Issues No-Action Relief to Phantom Technologies for Trading Software

According to the CFTC’s Market Participants Division, Phantom’s planned derivatives interface and related marketing would not trigger introducing broker registration requirements under the agency’s no-action position.

Fact Check
The statement is directly confirmed by the primary official source, the CFTC's own press release (Release Number 9197-26), which matches the date, entity (Phantom Technologies), and specific regulatory relief (no-action position regarding broker registration) mentioned in the claim.
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Summary

The CFTC’s Market Participants Division issued a no-action position to Phantom Technologies, stating in an official announcement on March 17 that the company’s planned derivatives trading interface and related marketing activities would not trigger introducing broker registration requirements. The relief applies to Phantom’s non-custodial software model, which connects users to CFTC-registered entities under specified conditions rather than custodying funds or intermediating trades. The update reinforces that the agency’s staff position covers Phantom’s planned access model for regulated derivatives markets while clarifying that both the offering itself and associated marketing fall within the no-action relief.

Terms & Concepts
  • No-action relief: A regulatory position indicating agency staff do not plan to recommend enforcement action for specified conduct if stated conditions are satisfied.
  • Introducing broker: A registered intermediary that solicits or accepts derivatives trading orders but does not hold customer funds.
  • CFTC: The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which oversees derivatives markets including futures and certain related intermediaries.