Important questions must be addressed before the U.S. can finalize substituted compliance, according to Commissioner Mark Wetjen of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Speaking at the Futures Industry Association's International Derivatives Expo in London today, Wetjen said, “There remain important and unresolved questions around the scope and granularity of the CFTC’s substituted compliance approach, particularly as it relates to transactional requirements such as clearing, reporting and execution.”
Wetjen noted that the CFTC supported substituted compliance with regulations that are recognized by Dodd Frank. He warned, however, that applying U.S. law in every case where a single U.S. entity was involved could result in fragmented liquidity and increased risk, he said.
“This could lead to increased operational costs and risk, as entities structure around rules in primary swap markets,” Wetjen said. “Regulators both here and abroad must do what they can to avoid incentivizing complex corporate structures that will only make global financial firms more difficult to understand, manage and unwind during periods of market distress.”
