Scott O'Malia, a Republican who used his position on theCommodity Futures Trading Commission to criticize some of theagency's efforts to rein in the $700 trillion global swaps market,said he will resign next month.

O'Malia, 46, the longest-serving member of the current CFTCpanel, will step down effective Aug. 8 after more than four yearsat the agency, he said in a letter released today.

O'Malia is leaving as the CFTC transitions to a new slate ofcommissioners and shifts from writing to enforcing rules put inplace under the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act.

“Although I did not support all 63 rules that the commission hasimplemented under Dodd-Frank, I am pleased to have contributed tothe policy deliberations to improve commission rulemakings,”O'Malia said in a resignation letter sent today to President BarackObama.

O'Malia said he was leaving “to pursue other opportunities”without specifying what those were. He didn't immediately respondto an e-mailed request for comment.

Agency Chairman Timothy Massad and two additional commissionerswere confirmed by the U.S. Senate last month.

O'Malia was a frequent critic of the CFTC's rulemaking processunder former chairman Gary Gensler, arguing often that the agencywas sidestepping procedural responsibilities to assess the costsand benefits of regulations.

In recent speeches, O'Malia criticized the agency's policies anda lack of international coordination that has fragmented the globalmarket. He also has called for a reassessment of the impact of therules on agricultural firms and manufacturers that use swaps tohedge risks.

O'Malia used his oversight of a technology advisory committee tothe agency to press for improved oversight of data in the swaps andfutures markets traded at CME Group Inc. and IntercontinentalExchange Inc.

“I have very much appreciated Scott's assistance, advice andfriendship,” Massad said in a statement. “I appreciate hisdedication to the agency, and his leadership in advancingtechnology at the CFTC.”

Dodd-Frank expanded the agency's powers in an effort to reducerisk and increase transparency after unregulated swaps tradeshelped fuel the 2008 credit crisis. The CFTC regulations aredesigned to have most interest-rate, credit-default and other swapsguaranteed at central clearinghouses and traded on platformsaccessible to money managers and banks.

The regulations were among the most controversial elements ofthe Dodd-Frank law and spurred lobbying and legal battles againstthe agency by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc.,CME Group Inc. and other financial firms.

(Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News, operates aswap-execution facility regulated by the CFTC.)

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