ISDA®
INTERNATIONAL SWAPS AND DERIVATIVES
ASSOCIATION, INC.
NEWS
RELEASE
For Immediate Release, Monday, October 6, 2008
For More
Information, Please Contact:
Louise
Marshall, ISDA New York, +1 212-901-6014, lmarshall@isda.org
Cesaltine
Gregorio, ISDA New York, +1 212-901-6019, cgregorio@isda.org
ISDA ANNOUNCES SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF
FANNIE MAE, FREDDIE MAC CDS PROTOCOL
NEW YORK, Monday, October 6, 2008 – The International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc.
(ISDA) today announced the successful implementation of its Protocol for credit
derivative transactions referencing Federal National
Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation
(Freddie Mac), the two US government sponsored entities (GSEs) that were placed
in conservatorship on Sunday, September 7. A record 651 organizations
adhered to the Protocol.
“The very high
participation rate in this protocol and its success in settling a significant
number of credit derivative trades on the two GSEs, constitute a major
achievement for ISDA and for the industry,”
said Robert Pickel, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, ISDA. “In
helping facilitate a seamless settlement procedure for these trades, ISDA has once
again demonstrated the critical role that it plays in supporting the integrity
of the credit derivatives market through these testing times.”
The Protocol, which closed on October 2, offers institutions the
ability to amend their documentation for credit derivatives transactions in
order to utilize an auction to determine the final price for settling CDS
transactions referencing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The 2008 Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac CDS Protocol was open to ISDA members and non-members. A list of adherents is available at www.isda.org.
Today's
auctions to establish final prices for senior and subordinated obligations of
the two entities referenced by CDS trades were administered by Creditex and Markit, in
partnership with 13 major credit derivative dealer firms. Details of final prices are available at www.creditfixings.com.
About ISDA
ISDA, which represents
participants in the privately negotiated derivatives industry, is among the
world’s largest global financial trade associations as measured by number of
member firms. ISDA was chartered in 1985, and today has approximately 850 member
institutions from 56 countries on six continents. These members include most of
the world’s major institutions that deal in privately negotiated derivatives,
as well as many of the businesses, governmental entities and other end users
that rely on over-the-counter derivatives to manage efficiently the financial
market risks inherent in their core economic activities. Information
about ISDA and its activities is available on the Association's web site: www.isda.org.
®ISDA is a registered trademark of the International Swaps
& Derivatives Association, Inc.