Clearing chaos: US OTC industry braces for June deadline

With March 11 receding from view, all eyes have turned to the second stage of the US clearing roll-out. No-one knows precisely how many derivatives users will be caught this time, but estimates go as high as 2,000, and dealers, clearing houses and middleware firms are already nervous. By Joe Rennison

With six weeks left until the second over-the-counter derivatives clearing deadline hits the US, the industry appears to be hurtling towards a brick wall. Up to 2,000 firms are expected to qualify as so-called category two firms, which are required to clear selected interest rate swaps and index credit default swaps (CDSs) from June 10, but estimates of the number that will be able to start clearing at the deadline range from 200 to 300. That’s primarily because futures commission merchants