Exchanges and CCPs
One FICC member paid record $102bn to cover dues in Q4
Previous highest payment obligation of a single participant was $77 billion in size
Initial margin at Ice CCPs surged over 2020
Required IM at Ice Clear US increased 42% year on year
IM at LCH Ltd fell to post-Covid low in Q4
Required IM for SwapClear dropped to £149.5 billion, down 3% quarter on quarter
Initial margin at the OCC topped $100bn in Q4
Exchange-traded derivatives hub cleared 7.5 billion contracts in 2020
Margin breaches quadrupled at Eurex in 2020
Equity derivatives service witnessed 1,782 breaches last year alone
At CME, required IM increased over one-third in 2020
IM for futures and options hit $152.3 billion at end-December
Credit derivatives traded volume up 15% in 2020
Week ending March 1 was the most active in dollar-denominated swaps
SOFR swaps traded volume hit new high in January
Notional volumes surpass $222 billion
LCH Ltd sent record €6bn VM call to one clearing member in Q3
Largest estimated payment obligation in the event of a member default also climbs quarter on quarter
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
JSCC increases skin in the game after merger
CCP added ¥2.4 billion to cover commodities contracts
At LCH Ltd, IM levels edged lower in Q3
Peak aggregate initial margin call for equities fund hit £3 billion
Initial margin at the OCC leapt 20% in Q3
Cleared options contract volumes hit 1.9 billion in Q3
SOFR trading surged at year end
End-2020 volume and rate spike was muted compared to previous years
IM, default fund resources fell at Eurex in Q3
Total collateral held remains elevated compared to pre-coronavirus crisis
€STR transition stymied by addiction to Eonia – ECB
Notional outstanding OIS referencing outgoing rate has increased year-to-date
CCP liquidity risks varied in Q2
Most clearing services said their estimated largest payment obligations fell quarter-on-quarter
Initial margin held by top CCPs declined over Q2
Cash collateral held at central banks down 23% across top CCPs
FICC default exposure exceeded size of clearing fund in Q2
Mortgage-backed securities division had $887 million of uncovered exposure to collapse of two members
Sovereign bond IM increases at LCH Ltd
Margin held in own sovereign debt up 50% year-on-year
Eurex initial margin ebbed over Q2 as default fund swelled
Participant contributions to default fund up 55% quarter-on-quarter
JSCC placed majority of its default funds with the BoJ in Q2
Loss-absorbing resources stashed with commercial banks fell over the three months to end-June
Number of SOFR swaps traded hits new peak
Over 220 swaps struck for the first time since trading began