CFTC Paves Way For Broader Advertising Of Private Funds

On Sept. 9, 2014, the staff of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued an exemptive letter providing relief to commodity pool operators (CPOs) from having to comply with certain conditions in CFTC Rules 4.7(b) and 4.13(a)(3). These conditions had been an impediment to use of recently adopted Rule 506(c) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), which allows an issuer to make a private offering without requiring that the issuer and its agents avoid “general solicitation” in connection with the offer and sale of the securities. The staff’s action was intended to harmonize the CFTC’s rules with Rule 506 and could expand the scope of communications and/or use of advertising in connection with the offer and sale of private funds that are commodity pools.