Elimination Of LIBOR-Based Loans May Come Sooner Than Many Expect

On May 20, 2016, the New York Federal Reserve Bank's Alternative Reference Rate Committee ("ARRC") released an interim report announcing its preliminary recommendations on a replacement for LIBOR, the interest rate benchmark that dominates the leveraged loan market and has been the subject of ongoing controversy as a result of alleged illegal manipulation in the rate setting process. Voting members of the ARRC include regulators from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the Treasury Department, and representatives of major global banks (Bank of America, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, Nomura, RBS, Société Générale, UBS and Wells Fargo).