Almost two weeks ago, On April 14, we reported the striking news that DB has decided to “turn” against the precious metals manipulation cartel by first settling long-running silver and gold price fixing lawsuits which in addition to “valuable monetary consideration” would expose the other banks’ rigging after DB also “agreed to provide cooperation to plaintiffs, including the production of instant messages, and other electronic communications, as part of the settlement.”
It was then that we also reminded readers that the US commodity “regulator”, the CFTC in 2013 closed its five year investigation concerning allegations that the biggest bullion banks manipulate silver markets and prices. It proudly reported in September 2013 that it found no evidence of wrongdoing and dropped the probe. This is what it said:
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) Division of Enforcement has closed the investigation that was publicly confirmed in September 2008 concerning silver markets. The Division of Enforcement is not recommending charges to the Commission in that investigation. For law enforcement and confidentiality reasons, the CFTC only rarely comments publicly on whether it has opened or closed any particular investigation. Nonetheless, given that this particular investigation was confirmed in September 2008, the CFTC deemed it appropriate to inform the public that the investigation is no longer ongoing. Based upon the law and evidence as they exist at this time, there is not a viable basis to bring an enforcement action with respect to any firm or its employees related to our investigation of silver markets.
We concluded by asking whether, in light of this confirmation that the CFTC’s probe was “lacking” perhaps it was time for the so-called regulators who at the time was headed by ex-Goldmanite Gary Gensler (and assisted by “revolving door” expert and HFT lobby sellout Bart Chilton) to reopen its investigation?
Much to our surprise, we found that the CFTC not only was not planning on reopening its investigation, but that it had actually not heard about the settlement until nearly ten days later.
This is what Chris Powell, treasurer of the Gold Anti-Trust Committee, which has been crusading against precious metals manipulation for years, wrote:
CFTC didn’t know of Deutsche’s market-rigging settlement until asked by GATA
Since the CFTC has jurisdiction over the U.S. commodity futures markets and since the commission purported to have undertaken a five-year investigation of the silver market, closing it in September 2013 upon concluding that there was no cause for action –
http://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/pr6709-13
— it was natural to seek comment from the commission about the Deutsche Bank news.
So on Saturday, April 16, your secretary/treasurer e-mailed the commission’s news media office as follows, providing the Internet link to the Bloomberg News report:
“Does the commission have any reaction to Deutsche Bank’s admission to manipulating the gold and silver markets, as reported by Bloomberg News this week? Is the commission responding to Deutsche Bank’s admission in any way? As you may recall, some years ago the commission reported that it had investigated the silver market and had found nothing improper. Is the commission reconsidering that conclusion?”
Receiving no response, on Tuesday, April 19, your secretary/treasurer sent by facsimile machine a letter to the office of the chairman of the CFTC, Tim Massad, reading: “As I am unable to get any acknowledgement from your commission’s press office, could you answer my questions here? Does the commission have any reaction to Deutsche Bank’s admission to manipulating the gold and silver markets, as reported by various news organizations last week? Is the commission responding to Deutsche Bank’s admission in any way? As you may recall, some years ago the commission reported that it had investigated the silver market and had found nothing improper. Is the commission reconsidering that conclusion? Thanks for your help.”
Having received no acknowledgment of that letter as well, yesterday – Friday, April 22 – your secretary/treasurer telephoned the CFTC’s press office and within a half hour of leaving a message received a cordial call back from an assistant to the director. He said he was unaware of the Deutsche Bank story and could find no reference to it in the commission’s compendium of news reports of interest to the commission’s work.
Your secretary/treasurer conceded that the story is being largely suppressed by Western financial news organizations and sent him the links to the Reuters and Bloomberg stories as well as a link to the original complaint in the class-action lawsuit. He said he would consult his superiors and hoped to reply to me next week.
Of course all this gives the impression that the CFTC not only doesn’t know what’s going on in its jurisdiction but also that it doesn’t want to know. It is additional evidence that certain commodity market rigging is outside the commission’s concern because the U.S. government and other governments are the actual perpetrators, surreptitious market rigging by the government being specifically authorized by the Gold Exchange Act of 1934 as amended in the 1970s –
https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/international/ESF/Pages/esf-ind…
— and because of the admission in recent official filings by CME Group, operator of the major U.S. futures exchanges, that it provides volume trading discounts to governments and central banks for surreptitiously trading all futures contracts on its exchanges:
http://www.gata.org/node/14385
http://www.gata.org/node/14411
All this also seems to confirm that the prerequisites of this market rigging are the cowardice of the monetary metals mining industry, which refuses to protest it, and the cowardice of mainstream financial news organizations, which refuse to report it.
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