The criminal charge comes about five months after the Commodity Futures Trading Commission sued Mr. Taylor in a civil lawsuit, alleging he entered fabricated trades by bypassing an internal system that was designed to send electronic trades to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

WSJ: Ex-Goldman Trader Pleads Guilty to Fraud

Gensler will be in charge of the CFTC, an independent agency created by Congress to regulate trading in the commodity futures and option markets.

NPR: Obama Names Mary Schapiro As SEC Chief