European and US market participants are having to prepare for the introduction of OTC derivatives legislation and clearing reforms, despite continuing uncertainty about the exact nature of significant elements of the new rules. Given the ‘sea of change’ engulfing the sector it’s important to focus on the practical effects of new regulation from a clearing member or market participant perspective.

Mapping the ‘sea of change’

Before going into any detail on individual areas of concern, it is worth very briefly sketching out the regulatory framework. In the US, the mechanism for implementing OTC derivatives regulations and clearing reforms is contained in the Dodd-Frank Act, while in Europe, the main legislation is the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR – as below), supported by further reforms in the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) and the Capital Requirements Directive 4 (CRD4). These changes are in response to the financial crisis, which highlighted a lack of information on positions and exposures of individual firms in OTC derivatives. This issue was seen to have prevented regulators from getting a clear view of the inherent risks building up in the system. It was also judged to have impeded accurate assessment of the consequences of a default and, as described by a recent European Commission impact assessment, “helped fuel suspicion and uncertainty among market participants during a crisis”.

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