ISDA Letter on Reform of UK EMIR

On December 22, 2022, ISDA CEO Scott O’Malia sent a letter and accompanying note to HM Treasury, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Bank of England with recommendations to reform the UK European Market Infrastructure Regulation intragroup transaction exemption and the equity options exemption for variation margin and initial margin.

ISDA proposes that there should be permanent intragroup exemptions from margin and clearing requirements for over-the-counter derivatives between UK and non-UK group companies, which do not depend on equivalence determinations in respect of non-UK countries. The note presents a set of reforms that would give the industry clarity and would remove a cliff edge for some firms at the end of 2023. The letter also urges UK authorities to permanently exempt single-stock options and equity index options from margin requirements, and to communicate plans early to firms that otherwise face an uncertain implementation period.

ISDA AGM Studio: Scott O'Malia and Chris Edmonds

Christopher Edmonds, president, fixed income & data services, at Intercontinental Exchange, speaks with Scott O’Malia, ISDA CEO, about how market volatility, regulatory change and technological transformation are reshaping global markets. The discussion explores what recent volatility has meant for participation,...

ISDA AGM Studio: Bill Borden, Microsoft

Bill Borden, corporate vice president, worldwide financial services, at Microsoft, speaks with Mark New, ISDA’s co-head of digital transformation and senior counsel, about how artificial intelligence (AI) is shaping the future of financial markets and the key factors firms should...

ISDA AGM Studio: Heath Tarbert

Heath Tarbert, president of Circle, speaks with ISDA CEO Scott O’Malia about the primary applications of stablecoins in derivatives markets and how key legal considerations – including bankruptcy treatment and settlement finality – are being addressed as digital assets become...

ISDA AGM Studio: Yuval Rooz

Yuval Rooz, co-founder and CEO of Digital Asset, speaks with ISDA CEO Scott O’Malia about the growing momentum behind tokenization, the most compelling use cases for derivatives markets and the remaining hurdles that need to be addressed to enable widespread...