Modern Money SmartPod
Modern Money SmartPod
Road Trip: FIA's Walt Lukken Outlines What to Expect at Boca 2025
In what has become an annual tradition for this podcast, Futures Industry Association President and CEO Walt Lukken stops by the show to preview what's in store at the annual International Futures Industry Conference in Boca Raton, Florida. It is the 50th anniversary of Boca, so this year's gathering is a big one. While the agenda is packed with fireside chats, speeches and panel discussions featuring some of the most influential leaders in the derivatives industry, Lukken shared his insights on a few other topics, including:
- How Boca has evolved throughout the years
- What will be this year's hottest topic? (Spoiler alert!: Trump, Trump and Trump)
- What a shift in regulators' views on capital might mean for the industry
A stage-diving Walt???: We also had a bit of fun during our conversation. With Cheap Trick set to perform in concert at this year's conference, Walt reveals an interesting piece of personal music trivia when he explains how long he has been a fan of the band. When I asked Walt if one of the exchanges at the conference should launch an Event Contract based on whether he will do a stage dive during the concert, Walt said ... well ... you'll have to listen to hear his answer!
(Note: This transcript was created using artificial intelligence. It has not been edited verbatim.)
Sean McMahon 0:00
Hello everyone, and welcome to the Modern Money SmartPod. I'm your host, Sean McMahon, and as the calendars turn to march, it's time once again for the International Futures Industry Conference, aka Boca. And in what has become an annual tradition for this podcast, we're welcoming to the show Walt Lukken, the President and CEO of the Futures Industry Association. Walt, how you doing today?
Walt Lukken 0:31
Sean, great to see you. Every time I see you, it means Boca is around the corner. Very exciting.
Sean McMahon 0:36
Yeah, exactly. I want to hear from you about what you're excited about for this year's Boca, obviously, as listeners might not know, this is 50 years of Boca. So what does that mean to you?
Walt Lukken 0:49
Well, me, personally, it is recognizing the amazing pioneers who have helped to create our industry for 50 years, the strategies and leaders of our industry have been formed and discussed by the pioneers of our industry down at Boca. And so to be able to be a steward of our industry and be part of FIA and to help bring that ecosystem together down at our Boca conference is amazing for me personally, and every year, it's just the start and the refreshment of a new year for our industry, and it's exciting to get down there.
Sean McMahon 1:24
Yeah, and someone in your position, you've kind of participated in Boca in a few different roles, you know, at one point as a regulator, obviously, is now kind of the captain of the ship, or the steering the agenda for the week. So how has the event evolved over these years?
Walt Lukken 1:39
Well, yeah, you're right. I started coming to Boca in 2003 as a CFTC Commissioner, and gave the chairman's speech down there in 2007 when I was chair of the CFTC. And now get the privilege of being at the head of the FIA. You know, I think for for many, Boca has evolved over the years, and it's always been a gathering for our industry, but the flavor of it has changed over the years. It used to be more of a reward for a lot of the floor traders that were on the exchanges, that were being a part of the trading of our community, and they would come down to the Florida Sunshines, and also a lot of members of Congress used to come down as well before there are a lot of prohibitions on travel and that kind of thing. But over the years, it's turned into more of a deal making conference. You have the decision makers from the entire ecosystem of our industry. That's the exchange leaders, it's the clearing houses, it's the intermediaries, but importantly, the clients as well as the analysts that are looking at these public companies as well to see how we're doing as an industry. So that combination, including the regulators are still coming down for their annual meeting, creates a real powerful decision making group that you can sit and have conversations and make deals and have things completed in just a three day span. You know, hopefully I'm not divulging any confidences, but Jeff Sprecher told me it's his most productive three days of the year, and that we want people to feel that way. Whoever's coming down there
Sean McMahon 3:16
I've been now, I think it's maybe like 12th year, and certainly I've seen it evolve. But yeah, it seems like it's definitely the meeting place for everyone. The meeting place for everyone to kind of get together and get things done. And as you might know, every year, it seems like maybe two, possibly three themes kind of emerge throughout the week. You know, they create the most buzz. So do you have any bold predictions about what those topics might be this year?
Walt Lukken 3:37
Well, I think the top three are going to be Trump, Trump and Trump, I mean, I think, you know, the President is, you know, causing a lot of disruption in how he is rolling out his agenda, some positive, some challenging. So I think a lot of the things that he's doing, whether it's on tariffs, which I think makes our industry a bit nervous about what that could it mean for open markets, but very positive around, you know, the regulatory agenda, and how that what that might mean for less burdensome on our markets, so all those things. Then you throw in Doge on top of that. You know, how that might impact regulatory structures, or just the people who are overseeing our markets. It's going to be a big part of the agenda. I do think there's going to be, you know, lots of other things going on around the traditional topics of capital and technology and, you know, just the global nature of our business. But I do think the Trump agenda is going to be a focal point for this year's Boca.
Sean McMahon 4:39
Now, you mentioned the agenda at Boca, and I can tell you, it's jam packed. I've taken a look at it, jam packed, not surprisingly, with incredible speakers and panels and experts from all corners of the industry. And now I don't want to make you, you know, choose your favorite child here, but are there any sessions that you might be looking forward to in particular?
Walt Lukken 4:56
Well, I think I sort of grouped them in. The thought leaders. So we have great keynote fireside chats that we're doing with the Dina Friedman, with Bonnie Chan from the Hong Kong exchange, with Rodrigo benaventura, who's the head of Iosco. So we'll have one of our regulators giving us an address, and also John Dugan, the chair of Citigroup, talking about what's the future look like in this administration on capital and other issues that may be impacting that bank. So, you know, I love to hear what these visionaries might have to say going into this year. I think secondly, it's just celebrating the Hall of Fame. I mean, this is an anniversary year for not only Boca but also for our Hall of Fame. This is our 20th anniversary of our Hall of Fame. And so we have a special anniversary class consisting of Mark Bagan, Terry Duffy, Jeff Sprecher, Don Wilson, Debbie Stabenow and Laura Cha of the Hong Kong exchange. So those six individuals are very special class of the Hall of Fame, and really have done so much for our industry. So I'm excited to cheer them on and see them inducted into the FIA Hall of Fame.
Sean McMahon 6:10
Yeah, that session should be incredible, seeing all those industry legends up there. And now, as I mentioned, you and I get together every year and have this conversation. And one of the things I noticed you like to do is kind of use Boca as an opportunity to take stock of what the industry has achieved throughout the preceding year. So what are some of the achievements you're most proud of from FIA and the broader industry since we got together last year in Boca?
Walt Lukken 6:32
Well, we've had another record year of volumes. Our industry keeps performing, which is great news. And so in times of stress and volatility, and you're seeing a lot of that in the markets today. Our markets are able to help people to manage that risk, and so our markets continue to do what our markets were met and built for. So that's exciting that that continues to happen. I think we've also made great progress on creating standards for our industry, there's a lot of things that go on behind the scenes in the trading of futures contracts and clear derivatives that do not impact competitiveness. They really can be standardized, made easier, so that there is more of a plug and play for technology in our industry. So we've made great progress with our de mist initiative. So de mist is the derivatives markets Institute for Standards, but we've created two standards already this year. We have three on the way, but that's just going to allow innovation to flourish, that people can plug into our industry with new ideas. Think of it as the App Store, that we're standardizing a lot of things to allow more apps to be built. And to me, that's that's very exciting. I would say the last thing is the dialog around capital. So I think last time we were talking and last book, a year ago, capital was really going to limit the capacity of our industry to grow. The way the Basel capital rules were being implemented was really going to harm our ability to to list more futures contracts and to clear them. I think that dialog and that tone has changed, and it started in the last administration Michael Barr recognizing that clearing is a mitigant of risk and something we should encourage and incentivize. And I think the Trump administration is going to pick up on that theme, that we need to incentivize clearing, and there may be rule changes needed around the capital standards that will help incentivize clearing going forward. And as you think about Treasury clearing coming to be in that mandate, that's gonna be incredibly important to have that capacity to allow those markets to come into that safe, regulated space, and to bring that stability to that important marketplace.
Sean McMahon 8:45
Obviously, the industry's achieved quite a bit since we spoke last year at Boca, and as we've discussed, Boca has got a wonderful reputation for being a busy and productive gathering, but it's also got a little bit of reputation for being a little bit of fun. So I understand that on Tuesday night, FIA is going to be opening up its wallet to pay for a performance from cheap trick. Are you excited for that?
Walt Lukken 9:07
I'm incredibly excited. And I think when I first started coming to Boca in that in the early 2000s that was the time of all the exchanges competing with events and trying to outdo each other. And there used to be a very strong musical tradition at Boca where, you know Tony Bennett and Chaka Khan and Earth, Wind and Fire and all these bands would come and play every year, and it was very exciting. And this year, for the 50th anniversary, we decided, hey, let's let's find a band that would be equal to a lot of those great acts that we saw in the past. And the wonderful thing about Cheap Trick is they just celebrated their 50th anniversary last year. They're from Rockford, Illinois, where a lot of our industry is from Illinois, and importantly, it was my first album that I ever bought in 1978 and so to me, personally, I was like, Yeah, this. This is it. This is the band we're gonna get. And people seem very excited about it. So hopefully any. Anybody who's down there Come join us at in the grand ballroom for cheap trick. It's going to be amazing.
Sean McMahon 10:05
Well, you know, in the spirit of having a little bit of fun, you know, I wish some of the folks at this gathering might be the correct people to talk to to establish, say, an event contract about whether Walt Lukken might stage dive during the Cheap Trick concert. What do you think of that?
Walt Lukken 10:22
I think my insurance policy doesn't cover this. Now I'm excited. I'm really excited and a little nervous to actually introduce them, but I'm going to be sitting in the audience enjoying the concert, hopefully standing in the audience, enjoying the concert, and no stage of diving for me, those days are over,
Sean McMahon 10:41
Alrighty, well, we'll see. We might we might try to prod you a little bit. We'll see what we can get the Hall of Fame class to talk you into it. That's a deal. Hey, listen, Walt, this is always a pleasure talking to you. Look forward to seeing the sunshine next week.
Walt Lukken 10:52
All right, Sean, thanks so much. Good to see you.
Sean McMahon 10:56
Well, that's our show for today. But before I get out of here, one last reminder, be sure to watch for more episodes of this podcast as we bring you all the news and headlines from the 50th annual International futures Industry Conference in Boca you