1) 

2) 

3) ABOUT NFA National Futures Association (NFA) is the industrywide self-regulatory organization for the U.S. futures industry. NFA’s mission is to provide innovative and efficient regulatory programs and services that safeguard the integrity of the derivatives markets and protect investors. NFA’s activities are overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the government agency responsible for regulating the U.S. futures industry. AN OVERVIEW OF NFA’S MEMBERS Virtually every firm or individual who conducts futures, options on futures or off-exchange foreign currency (forex) business with the public must be registered with the CFTC and a Member of NFA. NFA Membership categories include futures commission merchants (FCM), forex dealer members (FDM), commodity trading advisors (CTA), commodity pool operators (CPO) and introducing brokers (IB). There are approximately 3,500 NFA Member firms and more than 50,000 NFA Associate Members – individuals associated with NFA Member firms. 

4) 

5) 

6) 

7) If the individual or firm is unable or unwilling to provide you with an NFA ID number, or if you have entered an NFA ID that you are certain is correct and “No Current Status” displays, you may be dealing with an entity not registered with the CFTC and not an NFA Member. Conducting futures or forex-related business with these individuals or firms could cause you problems. If you think you are dealing with an individual or firm not registered with the CFTC and not an NFA Member, please send an email to information@nfa.futures.org or call NFA’s Information Center toll free at (800) 621-3570 between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Central Time. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES In addition to BASIC, NFA publishes several informational brochures for the investing public, including: I Understanding the Opportunities and Risks of Futures Trading I Trading Forex: What Investors Need to Know I Scams and Swindles: An Educational Guide to Avoiding Investment Fraud All of these brochures are available at no cost. You can either download them from NFA’s website, or you can order copies by calling NFA’s Information Center. Investing in the futures and forex markets is a high-risk, volatile venture. Don’t add to your risk by giving your money to a firm or individual that you know little or nothing about. Always remember to conduct a background search using NFA’s BASIC system as part of your overall due diligence. 

8)