Josh Sterling
Josh Sterling is a Partner at the Washington, DC office at Milbank and a member of the firm's Litigation & Arbitration Group. Sterling is a leading practitioner in commodities and derivatives law specializing in representing banks, trading firms, derivatives markets, and other institutional clients in high-stakes investigations, enforcement matters, and other regulatory proceedings before the CFTC. He has over 20 years of experience in the derivatives and securities markets, both as lead counsel to major companies and as a senior federal financial regulator. Prior to joining Milbank, he was a Partner at Jones Day, where he represented financial services, energy, fintech, agriculture and other companies in matters before the CFTC, the SEC, and other financial regulators. He is also well-known as former Director of the CFTC’s Market Participants Division, where he oversaw the 3,300 financial firms worldwide registered with the CFTC to participate in the global derivatives markets. Today, Sterling actively advises several crypto mining and DeFi platforms and assists in the formation of various derivatives exchanges connected to the fintech space.
Josh Sterling Professional Experience / Academic History
Professional Experience
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Partner and Member of the Litigation & Arbitration Group
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Partner
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Director of the Markets Participant Division
Academic History
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J.D., Doctor of Law
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B.A., Magna cum Laude
CURRENT AFFILIATIONS
Co-Chairman of Finance and Law Community, DC Bar Corporation
EXPERTISE
Sterling is an expert in registering trading platforms, dealers, and asset managers with the CFTC.
Institutional clients also turn to him regularly for practical advice on trade compliance, registration, and other regulatory matters.
He also has extensive experience representing fintech companies in SEC investigations of their trading platforms and staking activities.
He represents clients that are active in the derivatives markets with matters before the CFTC, SEC, and various self-regulatory organizations including the NFA and the CME.
Sterling oversaw the 3,300-plus banks, intermediaries, and asset managers registered with the agency to trade derivatives in US markets.
He played a pivotal role in completing the remaining rulemakings required by the Dodd-Frank Act, as well as in charging and settling several groundbreaking enforcement actions.
He was responsible for the CFTC's examination, rulemaking, and enforcement referral programs governing those firms.
He was also responsible for the oversight of the National Futures Association (NFA), the self-regulatory body for CFTC-registered firms and individuals.
EARLY CAREER
Sterling began his legal career as an Associate at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP.
Before joining CFTC, he was a Partner at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP where he represented large-scale asset managers around the world.
He had experience working with clients that participated extensively in the derivatives markets, including the sponsors of exchange-traded commodity pools, registered investment companies, and hedge funds.
RECOGNITIONS
Band 4 Chambers USA
Band 4 Chambers Global for Derivatives
2020 Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Management