Final Rule Issued To Establish Minimum Margin Requirements For Non-Cleared Swaps And Non-Cleared Security-Based Swaps

On December 3, 2015, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Farm Credit Administration, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (collectively, "Agencies") issued a final rule establishing capital requirements, as well as minimum requirements for the exchange of initial and variation margin, for covered swap entities with respect to non-cleared swaps and non-cleared security-based swaps. The purpose of the requirements is to offset the greater risk to such entities, and thus, the amount of margin required will vary based on relative risk. The final rule implements sections 731 and 764 of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 and will take effect on April 1, 2016 – however, the minimum margin requirements will not phase-in until September 1, 2016. All swap counterparties must comply with the variation margin requirements by March