For Immediate Release Monday,
September 17, 2001
For More Information, Please Contact:
Stacy Carey, ISDA New York, (212) 332-1200; Fax (212) 332-1212; scarey@isda.org
ISDA STATEMENT REGARDING EQUITY DERIVATIVE
TRANSACTIONS
NEW YORK, Monday, September 17, 2001 – The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) today announced that a broad group of market participants and ISDA met on September 13 and 14, 2001 to discuss how to address the market situation for equity derivatives in light of the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001, which resulted in the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and other exchanges either ceasing trading or failing to open trading.
In light of these events, ISDA issues the following guidance for all parties to any transaction involving equity derivatives that were entered into on or before September 11, 2001 either documented under ISDA Master Agreements or otherwise. It should be emphasized that ISDA is issuing this guidance in light of the unique market conditions and is doing so in the interest of mitigation of market risk and promotion of orderly exercise, valuation and settlement of positions by participants in the equity derivatives market. Although parties are not obliged to follow the guidance below and may choose to negotiate an alternative means of addressing the events on a bilateral basis, in light of the current extraordinary circumstances, ISDA strongly encourages market participants to follow this guidance.
Market participants have considered whether Tuesday
(9/11/01), Wednesday (9/12/01), Thursday (9/13/01) or Friday (9/14/01) should
be considered a day on which valuation or expiration of options should have
occurred under equity derivative transactions involving shares listed on
exchanges or traded through quotation systems (or involving baskets or indices
of these shares). Unless parties
otherwise agree, any such day should not be considered a day on which valuation
or expiration of options should have occurred under equity derivatives
transactions involving such shares (or baskets or indices) where trading on a
relevant exchange in the
In addition, it was determined that, unless parties otherwise agree, the use by the AMEX of the facilities of other exchanges for the trading of its option contracts or other listed securities or the fact that certain options or other securities that are listed on the AMEX and other exchange(s) are traded only on the other exchange(s) shall not, in themselves, constitute a market disruption event. Further guidance on the treatment of trading on the AMEX will be provided, as appropriate.