The recent federal indictments of more than a dozen Wall Street executives on insider-trading charges is yet another reminder that our financial system remains vulnerable to manipulation by the very people that investors have entrusted with their money.

 In the futures industry, too, investors can be at risk – not necessarily as a result of illegal schemes, but because of unethical practices that put the interests of insiders ahead of those of customers.  One such practice is allowing dairy futures brokers to trade for their own account.  This, we believe, creates an inherent conflict of interest between the broker and the broker’s customer.

 At Downes-O’Neill, we believe that the customer always comes first.  That’s why we never under any circumstances allow our brokers to trade dairy futures for their own account.  We believe that customers deserve to know that their orders are being treated at the highest level of priority, and that their interests come before the interests of the brokers whose job it is, after all, to serve them.

 In this, and in countless other ways, Downes-O’Neill is committed to the highest ethical standards and to a level of customer service and care that we believe no one else in the industry can match.