Category: ISDA
ISDA negotiations – the causes of delay, how you compare, and what you can do about it
ISDA negotiations – the causes of delay, how you compare, and what you can do about it. Introduction On 22 July 2024, ISDA published its latest “Digital Strategy Questionnaire”. The results of the survey provide a useful benchmark against which other market participants can measure their own performance in terms of trading document negotiation. Who […]
ISDA Close-out Framework
Emma Bibby and Alejandro Birsan, our DRS summer interns in 2024, have written a blog post on the ISDA Close-out Framework published by ISDA on 27 June 2024 Summary Because of regulatory requirements implemented as a consequence of the financial crisis in 2008, the world of collateralised OTC derivative contracts became more complex in the […]
ISDA plans to embrace the late 20th Century (for Notices)
Often referred to as “the most important contract in the world”, the primary purpose of the ISDA MA is to allow close-out with netting. While almost innumerable legal opinions exist to give some comfort to netting, the actual mechanics of close-out have been long due a major overhaul. The 2002 update to the ISDA MA […]
SEC “Safeguarding Proposal” looks dangerous
ISDA is in the process of responding to a request for comments on the SEC’s proposed “Safeguarding Rule for Investment Advisers (the “Safeguarding Rule”). The regulator seeks to amend the 60 years old Rule 206(4)-2 of the Advisers Act 1940, redesignating it as a new rule 223-1 under the same Act (the “Custody Rule”). Aimed […]
ISDA Urges End to Option Extension Exemptions
On the 3rd of March 2023, a follow-up letter was sent from the ISDA, the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) and the Investment Association to the PRA and the BoE. This letter set out the proposal to make permanent UK EMIR temporary exemptions for certain equity options by removing initial margin and variation margin. […]
Putting the TIGER to sleep – ISDA’s proposal for putting intragroup margin exemptions on a permanent footing
ISDA have published a letter from their CEO to HM Treasury, the FCA, and the Bank of England proposing to reform aspects of UK EMIR that touch upon intragroup exemptions. The letter, sent in December 2022, was published on 5th January 2023. ISDA’s intervention has been triggered by the lack of content touching upon EMIR […]
ISDA Definitions move post-printing press
ISDA have today published the 2021 ISDA Interest Rate Derivatives Definitions. The definitions consolidate the 70+ supplements since 2006 and incorporate the following updates: A new fallback trigger that will take effect if a party is prohibited from using a benchmark Generic fallbacks for those floating rates with no existing fallback provisions A new methodology […]
ISDA launches SBS Protocol
ISDA has today launched the 2021 Security-based Swaps (SBS) Top-Up Protocol. The Protocol allows firms that have adhered to either the August 2012 or March 2013 Dodd-Frank protocols to incorporate new SEC rules for SBS. The first registration date, in respect of certain of the new rules is 6 October 2021, SBS dealers must resister […]
UK EMIR- tomAto tomAHto
This year’s “transition” period has inevitably devolved into a slow game of “Chicken”- it’s yet to be seen whether it will result in a complete car crash. Whatever the extension/shadow deal/no deal final outcome; the City and financial services have been excluded from consideration. Absent any imminent prospect of equivalence decisions; ISDA has yesterday published […]
2021- Breaking Points
As a form of due diligence, I have to plough through such an amount of Fear-Uncertainty-Doubt “marketing” articles to have developed a deep dislike for the breed. That said, we thought it instructive to briefly remind readers of the 2021 Regulatory calendar, at least while some time remains to mitigate. Benchmark Reform The ISDA Fallbacks […]