468
Opinion of the Court
the-counter" (OTC) market.3 Ibid. No options were ever sold directly to petitioners' customers. However, their positions were tracked through internal accounts, and investors were provided weekly reports showing the putative status of their holdings. Petitioners and their customers suffered heavy losses. Id., at 51-52. Subsequently, the CFTC commenced these proceedings.
Rejecting petitioners' defense that off-exchange transactions in foreign currency options are exempt from the CEA, the District Court appointed a temporary receiver to take control of their property for the benefit of their customers. App. to Pet. for Cert. 5b-6b. Relying on Circuit precedent,4 and acknowledging a conflict with another Circuit,5 the Court of Appeals affirmed. 58 F. 3d, at 54. We granted certiorari to resolve the conflict. 517 U. S. 1219 (1996). For the reasons that follow, we reverse and remand for further proceedings.
II
The outcome of this case is dictated by the so-called "Treasury Amendment" to the CEA. 88 Stat. 1395, 7 U. S. C. § 2(ii). We have previously reviewed the history of the CEA and generally described how it authorizes the CFTC to regulate the "volatile and esoteric" market in
3 We are informed by amici that participants in the "highly evolved, sophisticated" OTC foreign currency markets include "commercial and investment banks, . . . foreign exchange dealers and brokerage companies, corporations, money managers (including pension, mutual fund and commodity pool managers), commodity trading advisors, insurance companies, governments and central banks." Brief for Foreign Exchange Committee et al. as Amici Curiae 8. These markets serve a variety of functions, including providing ready access to foreign currency for international transactions, and allowing businesses to hedge against the risk of exchange rate movements. Id., at 8-9.
4 58 F. 3d 50, 53 (CA2 1995) (citing Commodity Futures Trading Comm'n v. American Bd. of Trade, 803 F. 2d 1242 (CA2 1986)).
5 58 F. 3d, at 54 (citing Salomon Forex, Inc. v. Tauber, 8 F. 3d 966 (CA4 1993), cert. denied, 511 U. S. 1031 (1994)).
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