N.Y. Mercantile Exchange Head Forced Out of Post

William Bradt, chairman of the New York Mercantile Exchange, resigned under pressure after the federal agency that regulates futures trading said his conduct “appears to have been inappropriate for the chairman of an exchange.”

The exchange announced Bradt’s resignation late Thursday after the Commodities Futures Trading Commission released a 98-page report that cleared him of violating securities laws or exchange regulations but raised questions about his personal business contacts.

The exchange said Bradt was succeeded by Vice Chairman Zoltan Guttman.

The commission’s report criticized Bradt for carrying on negotiations about creating a new business partnership with Kevin Conway, former exchange vice president for compliance.