Two Chicago Firms Benefit in Frenzied Aftermath of MF Global Collapse

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February 6, 2012

New York, February 6 (FinanceEnquiry.com) - Two of Chicago’s oldest independent brokers benefited the most from the chaos that took place after MF Global Inc. collapsed. These brokerages got the bulk of customer accounts, while others only made minor gains in the scramble for taking on MF Global customers during the month-long period for transfer of more than 25,000 accounts and nearly $2 billion in collateral. The two lucky firms gained a combined $1.2 billion increase in segregated customer funds in November, which was their biggest monthly gain in more than three years.

R.J. O’Brien Associates, which started trading in 1914 and was the founding member of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, gained customer accounts worth almost $800 million in November, representing an increase of 31 percent and nearly five times its monthly increase over the past three years.

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The other brokerage was Rosenthal Collins Group, that started as a grain broker in 1923. It gained customer accounts worth $362 million or an increase of 26 percent, which was also five times its three-year monthly average increase.�None of the other FCMs except ADM Investor Services that saw a $315 million rise could gain an increase of the size that RJO and Rosenthal achieved.

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