ISDA®

INTERNATIONAL SWAPS AND DERIVATIVES ASSOCIATION

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release Wednesday, March 16, 2005

For More Information, Please Contact:

Louise Marshall, +1 212 901 6000, lmarshall@isda.org

Susan Hartzell, Kennedy & Company, +1 914 961 2436, susan@kennedycom.com

ISDA REPORTS COLLATERAL USE AT $1.2 TRILLION;

PUBLISHES 2005 COLLATERAL GUIDELINES

BARCELONA, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 16, 2005 – Use of collateral in privately negotiated derivatives transactions and related margined activities continues to grow significantly, with the amount of collateral in circulation now estimated at $1.2 trillion. The International Swaps and Derivatives Association today previewed this headline figure from its 2005 ISDA Margin Survey at its 20^th Annual General Meeting in Barcelona. The results of the Survey highlight a 20 percent increase over the $1.02 trillion of collateral in circulation reported in the 2004 Survey. ISDA also announced publication of the 2005 ISDA Collateral Guidelines, which update and considerably expand upon the themes of ISDA’s 1998 Guidelines for Collateral Practitioners.

“Collateralization of privately negotiated derivatives has grown at a sustained, rapid pace over the past decade,” said Bob Pickel, ISDA’s Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer. “In light of this continued growth, we have published the ISDA 2005 Collateral Guidelines. The 2005 Guidelines will serve as a benchmark on the current state of collateralization and as a reference tool for practitioners using collateral to effectively mitigate credit risk,” he said.

In the 2005 Margin Survey, respondents reported over 70,000 collateral agreements in place, compared with 54,000 in the 2004 Survey and 38,500 in the 2003 Survey. The survey found that approximately 55 percent of all derivatives transactions, measured either by volume or by exposure, are now covered by collateral, compared to 50 percent in 2004. Of the 109 firms responding to the 2005 ISDA Margin Survey, 80 were banks, 14 were broker-dealers, and the remaining were institutional investors and end users.

In addition to documenting the current state of collateral management for privately negotiated derivatives, the 2005 Guidelines discuss the nature and mechanics of collateralization, how the collateral management function operates and interacts with other parts of the firm, the benefits and risk of collateralization and current trends and possible future developments in the field.

ISDA is the global trade association representing leading participants in the privately negotiated derivatives industry. ISDA was chartered in 1985, and today has more than 625 member institutions from 47 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.

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