First Read Gambling, Murder and Mayhem: Welcome to the New Futures Markets of Today JohnLothianNews.com Gambling, murder, and mayhem are now part of today’s CFTC-regulated financial futures markets. While mayhem has always been a feature of financial futures, you can now trade the outcome of the Super Bowl with “event contracts.” These contracts strip away […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff We had two obvious editing errors or typos at the top of yesterday’s newsletter for which I apologize. Obviously, the miracle of burning oil celebrated by Hanukkah runs until January 2, 2025, not until January 22, 2025, as we stated. Although, I am all for […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff On Tuesday I neglected to wish Happy Hanukkah to those who celebrate it, as Hanukkah started late this year and its start aligned with Christmas Day. Hanukkah runs through January 2, 2025. Happy Hanukkah! Also running from today, December 26, 2024 to January 1, 2025 […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff I am sure there are many cases among the 1499 sentences commuted by President Joseph Biden that brought forth significant or emotional responses from the affected communities or families impacted by the crimes committed. Let me share with you a statement about the crime committed […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff On Friday, Fortune reported that the top three editors at CoinDesk were fired following a clash with new corporate owners, Bullish. The clash stemmed from Bullish’s forced removal without the customary retraction notice of a CoinDesk story about crypto billionaire Justin Sun’s $6.2 million art […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff I have always been concerned about the perception that the markets and gambling were the same. I have always sought to differentiate the two and not use gambling terminology to describe market activity. It was not that long ago that futures trading was banned in […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff The CFTC’s Office of Customer Education and Outreach has issued a new advisory encouraging Americans to prioritize scam awareness as a New Year’s resolution for 2025. Titled Avoiding Fraud May be Your Best Resolution, the advisory highlights the rising threat of online investment scams that […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff Both my sons, Tim and Robby, have long hair. That is, they have grown shoulder-length hair. I have short hair and even though I had longer hair in middle school, I have had shorter hair the rest of my life. I have worked in a […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff Thank you to NYSE and ICE for the lovely NYSE Media Holiday Party last night on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. It was great to be back at the NYSE and on the trading floor for the party and to meet members […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff The holidays can be a festive time of the year for people gathering with family and friends. For some, it can be a time of anxiety and depression. But there is a larger issue about a mental health pandemic hitting the world’s workplaces, with financial […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff A source close to the class action lawsuit of CME Group members against the exchange reported to me yesterday that Lance R. Goldberg, one of the original plaintiffs in the class action suit, has passed away. Goldberg was a member of the Chicago Board of […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff President-elect Donald Trump rang the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange today in celebration of his being named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year. This was his second time ringing the NYSE’s opening bell. John Lothian News announces the launch of “Auditions,” a […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff CME Group has been named to ComputerWorld’s best places to work in IT for 2025, marking the seventh year in a row they have been named to the list. The Chicago derivatives exchange giant was named to several of the sub-categories, including number three for […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff During FIA EXPO, Chris Edmonds of ICE posted a video to LinkedIn (that I missed) where he showed a video clip of FIA Board Chair Alicia Crighton of Goldman Sachs receiving a package with a large envelope. There is music and then a voiceover by […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff I am headed to New York from Florida at the end of the week and will be there on December 16 and 17. I have not been to NYC since before the pandemic. Of course my timing could not be worse in some regards, as […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff The CFTC has issued an advisory highlighting potential implications of AI use under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and CFTC regulations. While not exhaustive or definitive, it emphasizes that CFTC-regulated entities must remain compliant with applicable requirements when deploying AI, either directly or via third-party […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced a record $17.1 billion in monetary relief for fiscal year 2024 in its Fiscal Year 2024 Enforcement Results Report released yesterday. This includes $2.6 billion in civil monetary penalties and $14.5 billion in disgorgement and restitution. The CFTC […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff It has been a very good year for principal traders, but DRW’s Don Wilson seems to be having an exceptional year. Besides being named to the FIA Futures Hall of Fame alongside such luminaries as ICE’s Jeff Sprecher and CME Group’s Terry Duffy, Don has […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff Today is Giving Tuesday, a global day of generosity that was founded in 2012 by a group of visionaries at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. It was conceived as a response to the consumerism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday and was […]
Read articleFirst Read Hits & Takes John Lothian & JLN Staff I am in Florida again, this time just for two weeks. I am finishing up some of the work I was doing in October and trying to get the damage to my roof fixed from Hurricane Milton. Also, JLN will not be at FIA Asia […]
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