Offering Advice & Services to Traders | Investors | Funds
Forex Trading Advisors
Customer Testimonial It is hard to believe that Hannah and her team are even available for less than a small fortune. CMSG is efficient and knowledgeable yet extremely patient and understanding in dealing with clients at various levels of development. I received my initial advice from CMSG years before actually committing. Our legal needs seemingly transformed every few months, yet Hannah and her team were supportive and responsive at every turn. That level of effort was far more than I expected but has certainly become the benchmark for all others. I look forward to many years of excellence and superior service from Ms. Terhune and her team at Capital ManagementServices Group October 25, 2010 Mxxxxxxx D. Sxxxxxxxxxr II
Regulation of Commodity Trading Advisors Trading Forex If you operate a fund that trades forex or you provide forex trading advice to customers you are subject to a regulatory framework that puts you on equal footing with commodity trading advisors (CTA) that trade on-exchange commodity future and option contracts (commodities). CFTC regulations require you to register with the NFA and meet the disclosure, record keeping, reporting, and other requirements applicable to CTAs trading commodities.
How Do I Become a Forex CTA? To become a forex CTA, you must (1) pass the Series 3 Exam and Series 34 Exam; (2) join the National Futures Association (NFA) as a CTA; and (3) submit your Forex Disclosure Document to the NFA comment and approval for use with your customers.
Forex trading advisors should have been registered with the NFA by October 18, 2010. If you are not NFA registered, you should not provide spot forex account management services until you are registered with the NFA.
Associated persons (AP) of an NFA registered firm can provide spot forex account management services only if they have passed the Series 34 Exam. APs registered before May 22, 2008 do not have to take and pass the Series 34 Exam.
Forex Disclosure Documents Both forex CTAs and forex CPOs need to have their forex disclosure documents reviewed and approved for use with customers by the NFA.
While registration can be completed quickly if a forex manager has completed the forex exams and the fingerprint requirement, the disclosure document review process takes a little time as the NFA scrutinizes the documents. While forex disclosure documents are similar to futures/commodities disclosure documents, there are a few specific forex disclosures managers need to include in the forex disclosure documents. Forex disclosure documents and forex managed account agreements are legal documents used with customers and should be drafted by an experienced attorney, such as Hannah Terhune. Spot Forex Introducing Brokers (IB) Persons who solicit or accept orders for Futures Commission Merchants (FCM) or Retail Foreign Exchange Dealer (RFED) for spot forex must register with the NFA as an Introducing Broker. Forex IBs must either maintain the net capital requirements applicable to futures and commodity options IBs or to enter into guarantee agreements with the FCMs and RFEDs they deal with.
To become an Introducing Broker you must (1) pass the Series 3 Exam (2) join the NFA as an Introducing Broker and (3) set up a clearing arrangement with a Futures Commission Merchant.
A forex IB can choose (1) to meet the minimum net capital requirements applicable to futures and commodity options IBs, or (2) to enter into a guarantee agreement with an FCM or an RFED. The NFA requires an IB to have a net worth of $45,000. If you cannot meet this capital requirement you can establish a Guaranteed Introducing Broker where the clearing FCM provides the equity. As a guaranteed IB, the IB can only clear through its guaranteeing FCM. As an IB cannot be a party to more than one guarantee agreement at a time, it effectively makes IBs that can't maintain the minimum net capital requirements exclusive sales agents for the FCM or RFED which they deal with. An independent IB (one that meets the net worth requirement) can establish clearing relationships with multiple FCMs.
Series 3 National Commodity Futures Exam First of all, the Series 3 Exam has nothing to do with spot forex trading. If you have no futures/commodities knowledge, prepare yourself accordingly. The Series 3 National Commodity Futures Exam is required to register with the National Futures Association as an Associated Person, Commodity Trading Adviser, Commodity Pool Operator, or Introducing Broker. It's a 2.5 hour 120 question exam divided into rules and market knowledge. You need a 70% on both parts at one sitting to pass. You do not need a sponsor to take the Series 3 Exam. You can study for the Series 3 Exam while your application forms are being created and processed.
How We Can Help You We can help with test registration if you wish. We offer consulting services for NFA and CFTC applicants. We will complete Introducing Broker application forms and assist in office procedure set-up, compliance guidelines, and internal control. For CTAs, we will prepare the Disclosure Document plus all NFA application forms. There is no charge for an initial consultation.
Customer Testimonial I would like to state unequivocally that I have had a completely positive experience in dealing with Capital Management Services Group. Truly, from the first phone call that I made to Capital Management and Barry Shapiro speaking with me, to the conference call that he arranged between the two of us and Hannah Terhune and the time that she took in answering all of my questions, and, finally, to the follow-up by Amy Hong, my case, establishment of a Forex Incubator Fund, has been thoroughly handled. Hannah Terhune responded promptly to my subsequent phone calls and Amy Hong is absolutely 100% efficient. I, certainly, plan to enlist Capital Management's services for my legal needs in the future concerning fund management. I would rate my experience and results 5 out of 5 stars! Totally satisfied, Rxxxxxx Sxxxx, Sept.22, 2010
Should I Set Up a Forex Managed Account Business or a Forex Pool? It's not a tough decision! It costs more money to set up a forex pool and the process takes a little longer. If you have customers ready, willing and able to commit money now, start by setting up a forex managed account business and add a forex pool later. With a forex managed account business, you do not have to hire an auditor and an administrator. Your customers will open and fund forex trading accounts at the forex broker you direct them to and you will manage their accounts pursuant to the NFA approved Disclosure Document you ask them to read and sign before committing to you and your trading program.
Customer Testimonial I wanted to thank you and your staff for the professional and timely services that you provided in setting up a CTA business. As an individual trader for almost 20 years I have a full grasp of markets but had very little knowledge in setting up a trading business for clients. Everyone at your firm was extremely friendlyand helpful in giving me guidance in this new startup. Your prices were fair and while I looked at different firms to handle the process yours was head and shoulders above the rest. Thanks so much, Sxxx Sxxxr Managing Partner Sxxxxx Capital Management LLC. June 18, 2010.
What is the NFA Registration Process? The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is the most prominent regulatory organization in spot forex and the National Futures Association (NFA) operates in association with the CFTC. The CFTC registration and disclosure document review process is handled exclusively by the NFA.
Why does it take so long for the NFA to approve Disclosure Documents? CTAs and CPOs both need to have their disclosure documents reviewed by the NFA. The disclosure document review and approval process takes a while. The disclosure document review process can be straight-forward or painfully miserable, depending on how experienced the document examiner assigned to the review is. The experience of the reviewer impacts on the time line leading to approval of the disclosure document for use with customers. Inexperienced reviewers will increase your legal costs. As our law firm completes many CTA and CPO registrations, we have observed this fact directly. We could submit virtually identical disclosure documents to the NFA at the same time and receive deficiency letters for each that are completely disparate. This would be due to the fact they were assigned to two different examiners. This is our repeated experience with the NFA. The NFA review process is labor intensive and how long it takes for your disclosure document to be approved depends on the luck of the draw.
Why Hire Us? Advising individuals on hedge fund startups worldwide, we are experts on investment adviser laws, hedge fund laws and regulations, forex fund regulations, and managed futures regulations.Our expertise extends to a wide variety of services, including state investment adviser registratoins, SEC investment adviser registrations, U.S. hedge fund formations, foreign hedge fund formations, forex fund startups, and managed futures fund startups. Additionally, we handle commodity pool formations, NFA registrations, cross border business planning, and investment manager regsitration in numerous vountries.
More Reasons to Hire Us When you engage us for hedge fund you get a unique combination of securities, tax, and international experience, focused on the trader niche. We have established a leadership position with traders. We are one destination for all your very special hedge fund and trader tax needs. We think we have the best set of offering documents based on the current and ever changing federal, state and offshore securities, commodities, and tax laws. We aim and deliver quick turnaround times, because we understand that our customers want to begin their money management business as soon as possible. We conceive, structure, and deploy the best tax saving strategies into your hedge fund vehicle (for the benefit of the manager and their investors) and your management company. Investors value tax-savings strategies and we utilize all our special knowledge and ideas in this area. Our customers value our one-stop relationship. We will help you start your business and continue to assist you. Our tax services division handles accounting, software, and tax compliance, including all tax matters (tax planning and tax returns). Only one thing counts with us and that's our customer relationships!
CapitalManagementServicesGroup.com is recognized by discriminating fund managers and traders as being the foremost tax and legal authority in the business. Attorney Hannah Terhune's education and experience are unsurpassed in the area of hedge funds creation and management platforms, and the complex body of tax laws related thereto. Ms. Terhune's exensive knowledge and experience have made her an indispensable resource for serious fund management and trading professionals. Ms. Terhune's articles on the subjects have appeared in over 100 publications worldwide. Chances are, if you have read about the above matters, Ms. Terhune has written about them. Give us the opportunity to use that knowledge and experience for you. CMSG provides the best services and support needed for hedge fund projects and associated activities in one convenient place, saving you time and energy. No need to coordinate work between different firms; we handle the entire process from start to finish. We offer hedge fund and money management accounting, tax services, tax preparation, consulting, entity and retirement plan formation services. Our professionals provide the highest quality services at competitive rates. But don't take our word for it, give us a call and let us prove what we can do for you.
Personal Consultations and Fees You get answers to your specific questions by speaking directly to Hannah Terhune, an experienced hedge fund attorney. Ms. Terhune's hard-earned knowledge and experience can be put to work to save you unnecessary steps and costly wasted effort. The consult is an invaluable opportunity to speak to Hannah one-on-one, and learn how to achieve more in less time. As a result, you can anticipate that the return on your investment will far outweigh the costs associated with our unsurpassed services. Of course, fees are a necessary part of the consultation. Ms. Terhune's credentials reflect an invaluable resource that combines a well-informed professional practitioner with sound ethical judgment that cannot be over-estimated. The expertise required to recommend best solutions and provide sound advice should never be taken lightly. We are confident that when you are finished with your consultation, you will be impressed and more informed about your business plans than ever before. Call (307) 213-4732 or Click Here to Request Services.
Our Commitment Henry David Thoreau wrote: "Do not hire a man who works for money, but him who does it for love of it." We are committed to your business plans and bringing you the best possible options. We are an established and internationally recognized business that serves and educates our clients throughout the industry. We do this by striving for the best results. Above all, we are a law firm. A lawyer is a philosopher and role model. The ability to improve our clients' lives is a privilege that we do not take lightly. There is tremendous power in being able to effect a positive change in our clients' lives. Our aim is to welcome our clients and to provide a comfortable, warm environment for all. We believe that making our clients feel comfortable and confident with the process provides the basis for a constructive relationship built on mutual trust. time. Thanks for visiting our website. We hope to have the opportunity to serve you.
