2020-07-01 | 2020-14094Added · Updated
Five federal financial regulators (OCC, Federal Reserve, FDIC, FCA, and FHFA) have issued an interim final rule amending margin regulations for covered swap entities. The amendment extends the initial margin implementation deadlines for non-cleared swaps by one year, moving Phase 5 to September 1, 2021, and Phase 6 to September 1, 2022. This extension provides entities with additional operational capacity to comply with margin exchange requirements without diverting critical resources from pandemic response efforts.
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 12 CFR Part 45 [Docket No. OCC–2020–0027] RIN 1557–AE98 BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM 12 CFR Part 237 [Docket No. R–1721] RIN 7100–AF92 FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION 12 CFR Part 349 RIN 3064–AF55 FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION 12 CFR Part 624 RIN 3052–AD34 FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY 12 CFR Part 1221 RIN 2590–AB03 Margin and Capital Requirements for Covered Swap Entities AGENCY: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Treasury (OCC); Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board); Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC); Farm Credit Administration (FCA); and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). ACTION: Interim final rule and request for comment. SUMMARY: The OCC, Board, FDIC, FCA, and FHFA (each an Agency and, collectively, the Agencies) are adopting and inviting comment on an interim final rule amending the Agencies’ regulations that require swap dealers, security-based swap dealers, major swap participants, and major security-based swap participants under the Agencies’ respective jurisdictions to exchange margin with their counterparties for swaps that are not centrally cleared (non-cleared swaps) (Swap Margin Rule). Under the Swap Margin Rule, as amended, initial margin requirements will take effect under a phased compliance schedule spanning from 2016 through 2020, and in a final rule published elsewhere in today’s issue of the Federal Register, the Agencies have extended the phase-in period to 2021. Due to the COVID–19 pandemic, the Agencies are extending by one year the phases 5 and 6 implementation deadlines for initial margin requirements from September 1, 2020, to September 1, 2021 (for phase 5) and from September 1, 2021, to September 1, 2022 (for phase 6). The Agencies’ objective is to give covered swap entities additional time to meet their initial margin requirements under the rule so as not to hamper any efforts
underway to address exigent circumstances caused by COVID–19. DATES: The interim final rule is effective September 1, 2020. Comments should be received on or before August 31, 2020. ADDRESSES: Interested parties are encouraged to submit written comments jointly to all of the Agencies. Commenters are encouraged to use the title ‘‘Margin and Capital Requirements for Covered Swap Entities’’ to facilitate the organization and distribution of comments among the Agencies. OCC: You may submit comments to the OCC by any of the methods set forth below. Commenters are encouraged to submit comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal or email, if possible. Please use the title ‘‘Margin and Capital Requirements for Covered Swap Entities’’ to facilitate the organization and distribution of the comments. You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
1BSBS/IOSCO extended the deadline for completing the final two implementation phases of the margin requirements for non-centrally cleared derivatives, by one year. The final implementation phase will take place on September 1, 2022, at which point covered entities with an aggregate average notional amount (AANA) of non-centrally cleared derivatives greater than Ö8 billion will be subject to the requirements. As an intermediate step, from September 1, 2021 covered entities with an AANA of non-centrally cleared derivatives greater than Ö50 billion will be subject to the requirements. See, https://www.bis.org/press/ p200403a.htm. you submit your comment to the Federal eRulemaking Portal, please also send it by email to FHFA at RegComments@fhfa.gov to ensure timely receipt by the Agency. Please include ‘‘RIN 2590–AB03’’ in the subject line of the message.
2 84 FR 59976 (November 7, 2019). 3 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). 4 44 U.S.C. 3501–3521. 5 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq. to give covered swap entities sufficient time to address both deadlines. As explained in Agencies’ most recent notice of proposed rulemaking addressing the Swap Margin Rule, the industry faced operational and other difficulties in preparing for the exchange of initial margin with a large number of relatively small counterparties by September 1, 2020; 2 therefore, the Agencies amended the compliance schedule to add a sixth phase for certain smaller entities. Consistent with the policy goals explained in the recent proposed rule, a one year extension for both phases will allow covered swap entities to prioritize certain larger counterparties and avoid operational challenges they would encounter if it was necessary to prepare for the exchange of initial margin with a large number of relatively small counterparties on the same compliance date in 2021. While this interim final rule provides covered swap entities additional time to comply with the Swap Margin Rule’s phases 5 and 6 initial margin implementation deadlines by delaying the effective date for phase 5 from September 1, 2020 to September 1, 2021 and, for Phase 6, from September 1, 2021 to September 1, 2022, covered swap entities and their counterparties may voluntarily start the compliance with the Swap Margin Rule prior to the new mandatory compliance dates in accordance with the original schedule or other mutually agreed date. The Agencies request comment on all aspects of the interim final rule.
III. Administrative Law Matters
A. Administrative Procedure Act The Agencies are issuing the interim final rule without prior notice and the opportunity for public comment. Pursuant to section 553(b)(B) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), general notice and the opportunity for public comment are not required with respect to a rulemaking when an ‘‘agency for good cause finds (and incorporates the finding and a brief statement of reasons therefor in the rules issued) that notice and public procedure thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.’’ 3 As discussed above, the interim final rule provides covered swap entities additional time to meet their obligations under the swap margin rule in light of the exigent circumstances caused by COVID–19. The Agencies believe that the public interest is best served by making the interim final rule effective as soon as possible given the scale, scope, and pace of the pandemic’s disruptive nature. The Agencies believe that issuing the interim final rule will facilitate the industry’s efforts to respond to COVID–19’s impact. In addition, the Agencies believe that providing a notice and comment period prior to issuance of the interim final rule is impracticable given the need for relief immediately. For these reasons, the Agencies find there is good cause consistent with the public interest to issue the interim final rule without advance notice and comment. As noted above, the Interim Final Rule is amending provisions that are being adopted by the Final Rule that also published in today’s edition of the Federal Register. The Final Rule will take effect August 31, 2020. So that this Interim Final Rule takes effect in its proper sequence for purposes of allowing the Federal Register to accurately update the applicable sections of the Code of Federal Regulations being affected by the Final Rule and this Interim Final Rule, the Interim Final Rule an effective date of one day later than the effective date of the Final Rule, i.e., September 1, 2020. The agencies have found good cause that, despite such a delayed effective date, general notice and an opportunity for public comment are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest. Compliance with the new regulatory regime for phase 5 on September 1, 2020 and phase 6 on September 1, 2021 involves significant planning by industry participants for months, and in some cases years, prior to the requirements taking effect. The agencies believe that, in this instance, publication of the Interim Final Rule in the Federal Register will provide industry participants critical information that will allow them to revise their implementation schedules immediately in light of the issuance of an interim final rule from the agencies that the phase 5 and phase 6 compliance dates will be delayed for an additional year. But for the need to properly sequence the Final Rule’s and Interim Final Rule’s effective dates and the 60- day delay in the Final Rule’s effective
date in order to comply with the Congressional Review Act, the agencies would have set the effective date for this Interim Final Rule upon publication in the Federal Register. Nevertheless, the agencies have requested comment on the Interim Final Rule and will carefully consider any comments that are received. In the event that Federal Register publication takes place after July 2, 2020, the effective date of the Interim Final Rule will be after September 1,
2020. In this instance, the agencies do
not expect that covered swap entities would comply with the phase 5 compliance date, as amended by the Final Rule, for the few days before the Interim Final Rule’s effective date occurs. B. Solicitation of Comments on Use of Plain Language
Section 722 of the Gramm-LeachBliley Act requires the Federal banking
Agencies to use plain language in all proposed and final rules published after January 1, 2000. The Agencies have sought to present the interim final rule in a simple and straightforward manner. The Agencies invite comments on whether there are additional steps they could take to make the rule easier to understand. For example:
6Under regulations issued by the Small Business Administration, a small entity includes a depository institution, bank holding company, or savings and loan holding company with total assets of $600 million or less and trust companies with total assets of $41.5 million or less. See 13 CFR 121.201. 7 12 U.S.C. 4802. 8 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq. 9 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(3). 10 5 U.S.C. 804(2). substantial number of small entities.6 The RFA applies only to rules for which an agency publishes a general notice of proposed rulemaking pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b). As discussed previously, consistent with section 553(b)(B) of the APA, the Agencies have determined for good cause that general notice and opportunity for public comment is unnecessary, and therefore the Agencies are not issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking. Accordingly, the Agencies have concluded that the RFA’s requirements relating to initial and final regulatory flexibility analysis do not apply. Nevertheless, the agencies seek comment on whether, and the extent to which, the interim final rule would affect a significant number of small entities. E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
Section 202 of the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Unfunded Mandates Act), 2 U.S.C. 1532, requires the OCC to prepare a budgetary impact statement before promulgating any final rule for which a general notice of proposed rulemaking was published. As discussed above, the OCC has determined for good cause that the publication of a general notice of proposed rulemaking is impracticable and contrary to the public interest. Accordingly, this interim final rule is not subject to section 202 of the Unfunded Mandates Act. F. Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994 The Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994 (RCDRIA) requires that each Federal banking agency, in determining the effective date and administrative compliance requirements for new regulations that impose additional reporting, disclosure, or other requirements on insured depository institutions (IDIs), consider, consistent with principles of safety and soundness and the public interest, any administrative burdens that such regulations would place on depository institutions, including small depository institutions, and customers of depository institutions, as well as the benefits of such regulations. In addition, new regulations and amendments to regulations that impose additional reporting, disclosures, or other new requirements on IDIs generally must take effect on the first day of a calendar quarter that begins on or after the date on which the regulations are published in final form.7 Each Federal banking agency has determined that the interim final rule would not impose additional reporting, disclosure, or other requirements; therefore the requirements of the RCDRIA do not apply. G. Congressional Review Act For purposes of Congressional Review Act (CRA), OMB makes a determination as to whether a final rule constitutes a ‘‘major’’ rule.8 If a rule is deemed a ‘‘major rule’’ by the OMB, the CRA generally provides that the rule may not take effect until at least 60 days following its publication.9 The CRA defines a ‘‘major rule’’ as any rule that the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of the OMB finds has resulted in or is likely to result in (1) an annual effect on the economy of $100,000,000 or more; (2) a major increase in costs or prices for consumers, individual industries, Federal, State, or local government agencies or geographic regions, or (3) significant adverse effects on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, or on the ability of United States-based enterprises to compete with foreignbased enterprises in domestic and export markets.10 As required by the CRA, the Agencies will submit the interim final rule and other appropriate reports to Congress and the Government Accountability Office for review. List of Subjects 12 CFR Part 45 Administrative practice and procedure, Capital, Margin requirements, National Banks, Federal Savings Associations, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Risk. 12
CFR Part 237 Administrative practice and procedure, Banks, Banking, Foreign banking, Holding companies, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Swaps. 12 CFR Part 349 Administrative practice and procedure, Banks, Banking, Holding companies, Capital, Margin requirements, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Savings associations, Risk, Swaps. 12 CFR Part 624 Accounting, Agriculture, Banks, Banking, Capital, Cooperatives, Credit, Margin requirements, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Risk, Rural areas, Swaps. 12 CFR Part 1221 Government-sponsored enterprises, Mortgages, Securities. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 12 CFR Chapter I Authority and Issuance For the reasons set forth in the common preamble and under the authority of 12 U.S.C. 93a and 5412(b)(2)(B), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency amends
chapter I of Title 12, Code of Federal
Regulations, as follows:
PART 45—MARGIN AND CAPITAL
REQUIREMENTS FOR COVERED SWAP ENTITIES
(e) * * *
(6) September 1, 2021 with respect to requirements in § 45.3 for initial margin for any non-cleared swaps and noncleared security-based swaps, where both:
(i) The covered swap entity combined with all its affiliates; and (ii) Its counterparty combined with all its affiliates, have an average daily aggregate notional amount of noncleared swaps, foreign exchange forwards and foreign exchange swaps for March, April and May 2021 that exceeds $50 billion, where such amounts are calculated only for business days; and (iii) In calculating the amounts in paragraphs (e)(6)(i) and (ii) of this
section, an entity shall count the
average daily aggregate notional amount of a non-cleared swap, a non-cleared security-based swap, a foreign exchange forward or a foreign exchange swap between the entity and an affiliate only
one time, and shall not count a swap or security-based swap that is exempt pursuant to paragraph (d) of this
section.
(7) September 1, 2022 with respect to requirements in § 45.3 for initial margin for any other covered swap entity with respect to non-cleared swaps and noncleared security-based swaps entered into with any other counterparty.
BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM 12 CFR Chapter II Authority and Issuance For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System amends 12 CFR
part 237 to read as follows:
PART 237—SWAPS MARGIN AND
SWAPS PUSH-OUT (REGULATION KK)
(e) * * *
(6) September 1, 2021 with respect to requirements in § 237.3 for initial margin for any non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps, where both:
(i) The covered swap entity combined with all its affiliates; and (ii) Its counterparty combined with all its affiliates, have an average daily aggregate notional amount of noncleared swaps, foreign exchange forwards and foreign exchange swaps for March, April and May 2021 that exceeds $50 billion, where such amounts are calculated only for business days; and (iii) In calculating the amounts in paragraphs (e)(6)(i) and (ii) of this
section, an entity shall count the
average daily aggregate notional amount of a non-cleared swap, a non-cleared security-based swap, a foreign exchange forward or a foreign exchange swap between the entity and an affiliate only one time, and shall not count a swap or security-based swap that is exempt pursuant to paragraph (d) of this
section.
(7) September 1, 2022 with respect to requirements in § 237.3 for initial margin for any other covered swap entity with respect to non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps entered into with any other counterparty. FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION 12 CFR Chapter III Authority and Issuance For the reasons set forth in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation amends 12 CFR Chapter III as follows:
PART 349—DERIVATIVES
(e) * * *
(6) September 1, 2021 with respect to requirements in § 349.3 for initial margin for any non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps, where both:
(i) The covered swap entity combined with all its affiliates; and (ii) Its counterparty combined with all its affiliates, have an average daily aggregate notional amount of noncleared swaps, foreign exchange forwards and foreign exchange swaps for March, April and May 2021 that exceeds $50 billion, where such amounts are calculated only for business days; and (iii) In calculating the amounts in paragraphs (e)(6)(i) and (ii) of this
section, an entity shall count the
average daily aggregate notional amount of a non-cleared swap, a non-cleared security-based swap, a foreign exchange forward or a foreign exchange swap between the entity and an affiliate only one time, and shall not count a swap or security-based swap that is exempt pursuant to paragraph (d) of this
section.
(7) September 1, 2022 with respect to requirements in § 349.3 for initial margin for any other covered swap entity with respect to non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps entered into with any other counterparty. FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION 12 CFR Chapter VI Authority and Issuance For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Farm Credit Administration amends chapter VI of title 12, Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:
PART 624—MARGIN AND CAPITAL
REQUIREMENTS FOR COVERED SWAP ENTITIES
(e) * * *
(6) September 1, 2021 with respect to requirements in § 624.3 for initial margin for any non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps, where both:
(i) The covered swap entity combined with all its affiliates; and (ii) Its counterparty combined with all its affiliates, have an average daily aggregate notional amount of noncleared swaps, foreign exchange forwards and foreign exchange swaps for March, April and May 2021 that exceeds $50 billion, where such amounts are calculated only for business days; and (iii) In calculating the amounts in paragraphs (e)(6)(i) and (ii) of this
section, an entity shall count the
average daily aggregate notional amount of a non-cleared swap, a non-cleared security-based swap, a foreign exchange forward or a foreign exchange swap between the entity and an affiliate only one time, and shall not count a swap or security-based swap that is exempt pursuant to paragraph (d) of this
section.
(7) September 1, 2022 with respect to requirements in § 624.3 for initial margin for any other covered swap entity with respect to non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps entered into with any other counterparty.
FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY 12 CFR Chapter XII Authority and Issuance For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Federal Housing Finance Agency amends chapter XII of title 12, Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:
PART 1221—MARGIN AND CAPITAL
REQUIREMENTS FOR COVERED SWAP ENTITIES
(e) * * *
(6) September 1, 2021 with respect to requirements in § 1221.3 for initial margin for any non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps, where both:
(i) The covered swap entity combined with all its affiliates; and (ii) Its counterparty combined with all its affiliates, have an average daily aggregate notional amount of noncleared swaps, foreign exchange forwards and foreign exchange swaps for March, April, and May 2021 that exceeds $50 billion, where such amounts are calculated only for business days; and (iii) In calculating the amounts in paragraphs (e)(6)(i) and (ii) of this
section, an entity shall count the
average daily aggregate notional amount of a non-cleared swap, a non-cleared security-based swap, a foreign exchange forward or a foreign exchange swap between the entity and an affiliate only one time, and shall not count a swap or security-based swap that is exempt pursuant to paragraph (d) of this
section.
(7) September 1, 2022 with respect to requirements in § 1221.3 for initial margin for any other covered swap entity with respect to non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps entered into with any other counterparty. Brian P. Brooks, Acting Comptroller of the Currency. By order of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Ann E. Misback, Secretary of the Board. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. By order of the Board of Directors. Dated at Washington, DC, on or about June 25, 2020. James P. Sheesley, Acting Assistant Executive Secretary. Dated: June 24, 2020. Dale Aultman, Secretary, Farm Credit Administration Board. Mark A. Calabria, Director, Federal Housing Finance Agency. [FR Doc. 2020–14094 Filed 6–30–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6210–01–P; 4810–33–P; 6714–01–P;
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