Joint Trades Capital Requirements for Swap Dealers and Major Swap Participants
Summary
SIFMA and joint trades provided the Commodity Futures Trading Commission with comments in response to Capital Requirements for Swap Dealers and Major Swap Participants re-opening the comment period for the Commission’s 2016 release re-proposing capital and financial reporting requirements for swap dealers and major swap participants and amended capital requirements for futures commission merchants.
The trades strongly support the Commission’s decision to solicit additional feedback regarding the 2016 Proposal, especially considering that key elements of the 2016 Proposal cross-referenced capital requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission for security-based swap dealers.
Excerpt
Chris Kirkpatrick
Secretary
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
1155 21st Street NW
Washington, DC 20581
Re: Capital Requirements for Swap Dealers and Major Swap Participants, RIN 3038-AD54, 84 Fed. Reg. 69664 (Dec. 19, 2019)
Dear Mr. Kirkpatrick:
The Institute of International Bankers (“IIB”), the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (“ISDA”), and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (“SIFMA” and, together with IIB and ISDA, the “Associations”)1 appreciate this opportunity to provide the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “Commission” or “CFTC”) with comments in response to the above-captioned release (the “December 2019 Release”) re-opening the comment period for the Commission’s 2016 release (the “2016 Proposal”) re-proposing capital and financial reporting requirements for swap dealers (“SDs”) and major swap participants (“MSPs”) and amended capital requirements for futures commission merchants (“FCMs”).2
We strongly support the Commission’s decision to solicit additional feedback regarding the 2016 Proposal, especially considering that key elements of the 2016 Proposal cross-referenced capital requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) for security-based swap (“SBS”) dealers (“SBSDs”), which were still pending in 2016 but which the SEC later finalized in 2019 (the “Final SEC Rules”).3 In addition, during 2019, three federal banking regulatory agencies finalized key changes to their capital rules in relation to over-the-counter (“OTC”) derivative contracts (the “SA-CCR Rules”),4 which also bear on certain aspects of the 2016 Proposal, and other aspects of the U.S. bank capital framework remain in flux as well.