Derivs - Regulation

Lawyers are raising questions about the possible impact the Dodd-Frank Bill will have on non-U.S. firms who have business onshore in the U.S.

The Collins Amendment to the U.S. Dodd-Frank Act could impose higher capital requirements on derivatives than previously thought.

The introduction of a clearing threshold for non-financial users that take derivative positions in the E.U. would be regressive and lead to regulatory arbitrage, according to a submission from the European Association of Corporate Treasurers to the European Commission.

South Korea’s Ministry of Strategy and Finance is considering further reducing the amount corporates in the country can hedge on their currency risk

Japan will be ready to clear credit default swaps by the second quarter of next year, an official involved in the implementation of a Japanese clearing platform, told Derivatives Week.

Some derivatives trading could become too expensive for sellsiders outside the big five under the swaps desk spin-off provision in the U.S. Dodd-Frank bill.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway may have to post USD6-8 billion in additional collateral for its derivatives book, according to a research report by Barclays Capital.

A number of members of the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee have called on the European Commission to design proposed leverage ratios which take into account netting for derivatives, a move that will be welcomed by the financial services industry.

U.S.-based derivative-using hedge funds have been seen heading to Ireland, local attorneys report. Some of the moves are being driven the U.S. Financial Reform Bill which will make trading over-the-counter derivatives more costly.

The administrators of Lehman Brothers International Europe are asking the High Court in England to decide on whether an International Swaps and Derivatives Association Master Agreement clause, which protects parties from stumping up payments on out-of-the-money contracts with insolvent counterparties, runs counter to bankruptcy law.

The European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee has urged the European Commission to draw up legislation that would give the proposed European Banking Authority the power to sack management at cross-border financial institutions, including those managers who oversee a firm’s derivatives operations.

The definition of a swap execution facility was tweaked during the conference Thursday evening between the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate to include earlier drafted language that will likely capture voice-brokered trades.