Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) are professional investment managers, similar to portfolio managers in mutual funds, who seek to profit from movements in the global financial, commodity and currency markets by investing in exchange traded futures and options and OTC forward contracts. CTAs are:

  • Regulated by the:
    • SEC regulates equity and bond related securities
    • CFTC exchange traded futures and options products as well as foreign exchange
  • Registered through the CFTC and members of the National Futures Association (NFA). (Registration status is available to the public through https://www.nfa.futures.org/basicnet/.)

How do CTAs Differ?

If you have traded for yourself, you understand that there are a variety of trading methodologies used to identify trading opportunities and implement risk management strategies. After years of trading and testing methodologies, CTAs maintain a disciplined trading niche through either a systematic or discretionary approach.

  • Technical vs. Fundamental
  • Systematic vs. Discretionary
  • Trading Styles

Trend Following
Counter Trend
Arbitrage
Option Writing or Selling
Global Macro/Fundamental Focus

  • Short-Term, Intermediate-Term, and Long-Term
  • Emerging vs. Established