U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is as an independent agency with the mandate to regulate commodity futures and option markets in the United States. It was created by Congress in 1974.
In the past, the majority of futures trading took place in the agricultural sector, but now "the CFTC assures the economic utility of the futures markets by encouraging their competitiveness and efficiency, protecting market participants against fraud, manipulation, and abusive trading practices, and by ensuring the financial integrity of the clearing process. Through effective oversight, the CFTC enables the futures markets to serve the important function of providing a means for price discovery and offsetting price risk."
"The CFTC's mission is to protect market users and the public from fraud, manipulation, and abusive practices related to the sale of commodity and financial futures and options, and to foster open, competitive, and financially sound futures and option markets."[1]