Initial margin
CME threatens to flee US as regulators challenge liquidity of US Treasury collateral
US CCPs may need committed funding to count US Treasury collateral as liquid
Bank initial margin posting raises liquidation concerns
Initial fears
Banks put ‘lazy’ assets to work in first initial margin agreements
Banks tout 'tremendous' capital savings as Bank of America, Barclays, Citi and other swap dealers start using illiquid assets as initial margin
Secretive start-ups eye uncleared OTC risk reduction
Dividing the over-the-counter market into cleared and uncleared products creates extra risk and inefficiency, critics claim – it also creates an opportunity for services that can repair the damage. Start-ups and established firms alike are now jockeying…
WGMR rules create funding complexity for dealers
How long will a client hold a 10-year swap? It could be 10 years – or it could be 10 days – and the answer has big implications for dealer funding requirements
Remembering Lehman: CCPs hardwire collapse into models
Five years on from the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the chaos that followed is now being erased from some value-at-risk models – and clearing houses do not agree on how to prop up their margin requirements. By Tom Osborn
Risk on the WGMR rules
The WGMR published its final rules on uncleared margin on September 2. Nick Sawyer and Matt Cameron discuss the implications
WGMR 8% collateral haircut unlikely to apply to variation margin
Regulators suggest WGMR haircut will not apply to variation margin, reducing the threat to the viability of the standard CSA
Industry ‘won’t bother’ with one-time rehypothecation
Critics say a limited provision in new WGMR rules for dealers to rehypothecate client collateral is impractical and offers no benefit to clients
WGMR rehypothecation rules unclear and confusing, say lawyers
Final WGMR rules allow collateral on uncleared derivatives to be rehypothecated under strict conditions, but lawyers say they are unclear on how the rules will work in practice
FX swaps and forwards off initial margin hook
Working Group on Margining Requirements has confirmed the exemption of FX swaps and forwards from initial margin, as well as a more restricted exemption for cross-currency swaps
The CCP price: users fear modelling mishaps
The CCP price
The slow growth of cross-product margining
The slow growth of cross-product margining
Single-name CDS clearing held up by fears over SEC regime
Temporary rules for portfolio margining by clients are set to expire in December. Hedge funds say they will stay on the sidelines until they know what happens next
Why CCPs are the new rating agencies – and pose the same risks
A clear alternative?
CME vs LCH.Clearnet: Clients may face CCP-specific pricing, warn FCMs
The two biggest clearing houses for interest rate swaps, CME and LCH.Clearnet, have different margin models – which may affect the prices charged to clients by clearing members. It could also affect the contest between the two venues. Joe Rennison reports
Simple, but sensitive: challenges face standard uncleared margin model
Simple, but sensitive
Profile: Standard Chartered's Feder on Singapore benchmark changes
A charter for change
Dealers plan standard margin model for WGMR regime
Fight over margin requirements for uncleared trades is not over, banks vow, but Isda will develop a standard model for use under the rules
Australian banks lobby for reduced margin on cross-currency swaps
Current treatment of initial margin on uncleared swaps will cost Australian banks $21 billion
Emir futures margin rules create 'regulatory arbitrage'
Clearing house and commodity traders voice concerns about European firms going to US due to Emir CCP standards
US-European divergence over default funds
Quotes of the quarter
Isda AGM: Big regulators hike pressure on small countries, panellists say
Initial margin requirements could increase liquidity strain on firms in smaller markets
Banks claim €300 billion hole in margin study
Banks call for Basel Committee and Iosco to rerun study on impact of uncleared margin rules after errors emerge