I confirm that I am a Qualified Eligible Person as defined under the (CFTC) Regulation 4.7.
Although this summary is intended to offer useful and practical information, CFTC Regulation 4.7 sets forth the complete definition of a Qualified Eligible Person. Should information in this summary be inconsistent with some provision in the Regulations, it is the CFTC Regulation that is the final word.
Qualified Eligible Person ("QEP") Definition
A qualified eligible person is an investor who fits into one of two distinct groups: (1) investors who do not need to meet the portfolio requirement and (2) investors who do need to meet the portfolio requirement.
(1) Investors who do not need to meet the portfolio requirement:
The following are considered to be QEPs regardless of whether or not they meet the portfolio requirement:
- registered FCM or RFED
- registered broker/dealers
- registered commodity pool operators (that have been registered and active for at least two years or operate pools with total assets in excess of $5 million)
- registered commodity trading advisors (that have been registered and active for at least two years or provide advice to commodity accounts with aggregate total assets in excess of $5 million deposited at one or more FCMs)
- state or SEC registered investment advisers (that have been registered and active for at least two years or provide advice to securities accounts with aggregate total assets in excess of $5 million deposited at one or more registered security brokers)
- qualified purchasers as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940 (see definition below)
- non-United States persons
- knowledgeable employees of the CPOs, CTA or Investment Advisor, plus certain other persons that provide services to the exempt pool. (See 4.7(a)(2)(viii) for complete details)
- 501(c)(3) organizations whose organizer and authorized investment manager are QEPs
- entities in which all of the owners/participants are QEPs
(2) Investors who must meet the portfolio requirement:
The following will be considered to be QEPs only if they also meet the portfolio requirement described below:
- investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act (i.e. mutual funds)
- banks, savings and loan associations, and other like institutions acting for their own accounts or for the account of a QEP
- insurance companies acting for their own account or for the account of a QEP
- plans established and maintained by various governments and related bodies for the benefit of their employees, if such plan has total assets in excess of $5,000,000
- employee benefit plans within the meaning of the ERISA (if the investment decision is made by a plan fiduciary specified in the rule; has total assets I excess of $5 million; or for a self-directed plan, the investment decisions are made solely by person that are QEPs)
- 501(c)(3) organizations with total assets in excess of $5,000,000
- corporations, business trusts, partnerships, LLCs or similar business ventures with total assets in excess of $5,000,000 and not formed for the specific purpose of participating in the exempt pool
- a natural person whose individual net worth, or joint net worth with that person’s spouse, at the time of either his purchase in the exempt pool or his opening of an exempt account exceeds $1,000,000
- a natural person who had an individual income in excess of $200,000 in each of the two most recent years or joint income with that person’s spouse in excess of $300,000 in each of those years and has a reasonable expectation of reaching the same income level in the current year
- pools, trusts, insurance company separate accounts or bank collective trusts, with total assets in excess of $5,000,000, which was not formed for the purpose of investing in the exempt pool and whose authorized investment manager is a QEP
Portfolio Requirement
If an investor is one of the individuals or entities described in (2) above, it will also need to meet the portfolio requirement in order to be considered a QEP. The portfolio requirement can be met in one of three ways:
- Owns securities and other investments with an aggregate market value of at least $2 million;
- Has had on deposit with an FCM at least $200,000 in exchange-specified initial margin and option premiums for commodity interest transactions, together with required minimum security deposit for retail forex transactions, in the six months prior to the investment; or
- Has a combination of the two above. For example, has $1 million in securities/investments and $100,000 in exchange-specified initial margin in the six months prior to the investment