Ice Clear US
Record rise in concentration at top CCPs leads to all-time high
Median top-five member open position concentration rises 2.4pp in Q4
FSB warned not to overfill its planned CCP resolution toolbox
Network contagion could make cash calls systemically risky, but TLAC also controversial
CFTC’s clearing house recovery rule splits industry
Some fear CCPs will fast-track recovery, others say any rule book will be ignored in emergency
Sovereign bonds top choice for IM collateral
Drive towards higher interest-earning assets strongest at CME and LCH among top CCPs
RepoClear’s default fund halves in Q1
Elevated initial margin allows LCH service to scale back second line of defence to lowest point on record
CCPs shun central banks in liquidity buffers rejig
LCH, Ice US and CME lead the way towards commercial banks
Initial margin requirements for IR swaps hit record $325bn
CME, Eurex and LCH report aggregate 10% rise in month marred by most severe crisis since 2008
Ice exec rejects cloud for critical infrastructure
FIA Boca 2023: SVP Bland “can’t imagine” outsourcing critical infrastructure; DRW’s Wilson warns of concentration risk
CCP ‘skin in the game’ still dwarfed by member contributions
Even as markets churned in 2022, clearing houses coughed up only 2% of funds at end-September – the same as the previous year
Commercial bank cash grows more popular for initial margin
Shift driven by Ice Europe as CCPs diverge on preferred type of collateral
EU and UK CCPs dominated by foreign members
Non-domestic clearing members accounted for over 70% of LCH’s and Eurex’s pool in Q3
CCPs’ largest members account for almost half IM
Analysis of 30 clearing services shows wide dispersion in concentration risk – with LCH and JSCC leading the pack
Brokers slam CME over ‘conflict of interest’ in FCM plan
Clearing members question how CME could be quasi-regulator as well as direct competitor
CFTC backs banks in tussle over clearing house governance
CME and Ice will need to pay more attention to clearing members on risk committees
Esma warns new foreign clearing house rules could backfire
Löber says euro swaps trading may move away from CCPs that face toughest EU scrutiny
Behnam urges wider CCP access to Fed deposit accounts
CFTC chair says recent market shocks highlight value of Fed accounts; Congressman agrees
Liquidity risk rose at most CCPs in Q3
JSCC, CME, Ice and Eurex among those that revised their VM estimates
Initial margin at Ice CCPs surged over 2020
Required IM at Ice Clear US increased 42% year on year
Top CCPs invest little clearing member cash in securities
Cash payments of initial margin and default fund contributions are typically placed with central banks
Skin in the game of top CCPs varies
The average default fund has less than 4% of total resources contributed by the host CCP itself
CFTC’s swap stay plan for clearing houses sparks alarm
Lawyers warn proposal could invalidate close-out netting and expose members to higher risks