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For more information contact:
Larry Dyekman
(312) 781-1372
ldyekman@nfa.futures.org or

Jennifer Bucko
(312) 781-1373
jbucko@nfa.futures.org

NFA reduces assessment fees to lowest level in Association's history

May 22, Chicago - National Futures Association's Board of Directors approved a reduction in assessment fees at its May 17, 2001, meeting in New York. The assessment fee will be reduced from $.18 to $.14 per round-turn futures contract and from $.09 to $.07 per options transaction. Assessment fee levels for mini-contracts will remain at $.04 per round-turn futures contract and $.02 per option transaction. The reduced fees, scheduled to become effective on July 1, 2001, will equal the previous all-time low levels NFA assessed in 1995.

NFA took this action as a part of its strategic objective to reduce its reliance on the assessment fee as a revenue source. Since NFA's inception, assessment fees have been the primary funding mechanism for the Association, accounting for 80% to 85% of NFA's total revenue every year. While the Board felt that the assessment fee reduction was appropriate, the Board also did not want to take any action that might impair NFA's ability to operate effectively. Therefore, to partially offset the decrease in assessment fee revenue, the Board approved increases to NFA's membership dues and registration fees, which have remained unchanged since 1992.

"This decision to increase dues and fees was taken after a lengthy process that included a thorough review of all relevant issues not only by NFA's Board and Executive Committee, but also by the Finance Committee and NFA's three Advisory Committees (FCM, CPO/CTA and IB)," says NFA Senior Executive Vice President Dan Roth. "The new levels are similar to the dues and fees currently being imposed by other self-regulatory bodies in the futures and securities industries."

The Board implemented the following new membership dues:

Additionally, the Board implemented the following registration application fees:

The increases to membership dues and registration fees and the decreases to the assessment fees have been submitted to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for approval. They are scheduled to become effective on July 1, 2001, unless the CFTC notifies NFA that it intends to review the changes.

NFA is a congressionally authorized self-regulatory organization for the U.S. futures industry.

* The fee is $65 when an AP applicant's sponsor electronically files with NFA a Form 8-R (without fingerprint cards) within 90 days after the applicant files with the NASD an application (with fingerprint cards) for registration as a General Securities Representative.