Derivs - Regulation

The City of London, which accounts for 43% of the value of over-the-counter derivatives traded globally, is losing out on attracting financial services startups due to industry fears over the outcome of regulation aimed at derivatives and short selling.

E.U. regulators and structured product players traded salvos over the need for more disclosure in the sector.

The gross outstanding notional of over-the-counter interest rate derivatives jumped from USD449.202 trillion as of June 30 to USD465.163 trillion as of July 31.

Trade repositories could be fined and have licenses revoked by European regulators. A European Commission draft bill seen by Derivatives Week would give the European Securities and Markets Association the power to request the Commission impose a fine or revoke a repository’s license if it, for example, seriously or repeatedly infringes regulation or no longer meets the conditions under which it was registered.

International Swaps and Derivatives Association officials have commissioned a Vietnamese-language version of the Master Agreement to facilitate the growing market.

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association has published a change to the master agreement to deal with the impending 30% U.S. withholding tax on equity derivatives.

Tradeweb is planning to launch an electronic equity trading platform for European equity options—a first for that market.

European regulatory authorities will be given powers to summon firms or financial services individuals to provide explanations and supporting documents setting out the purpose and the underlying risks to their credit default swap trading activities, according to a European Commission draft bill for naked short selling obtained by Derivatives Week.

UBS will close on its first two non-professional structured product deals in Taiwan in the next few weeks.

Derivative users and industry groups in Europe have voiced their opposition for the so-called systemic internalizer regime to be adapted and applied to the trading of over-the-counter derivatives.

Before Andrew Donohue leaves as the country’s top mutual fund regulator in November, the Securities and Exchange Commission will put out for public comment how it wants to better align the regulation of derivatives with the complex ways the mutual fund industry is using them today.

The planned retirement of Financial Accounting Standards Board Chairman Robert Herz has thrown proposed changes to derivatives accounting into question, as the exposure draft only passed the board by a 3-2 vote, with Herz in favor.