Dodd-Frank Developments

Subscribe to Dodd-Frank Developments via RSS

On December 16, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it adopted a rule to limit the potential for overlapping or duplicative regulation within its security-based swap regulatory regime. Specifically, the rule exempts certain activities of security-based swap execution facilities (SEFs) and security-based swap dealers from triggering the requirement also to register as a clearing agency. The adopted rule is in line with similar exemptions for broker-dealers and national securities exchanges.
Continue Reading SEC Adopts Clearing Agency Rule to Limit Potential for Overlapping or Duplicative Regulation

On December 16, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted to adopt final rules that will require resource extraction issuers that are required to file reports under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) to disclose payments made to the US federal government or foreign governments for the commercial development of oil, natural gas or minerals.
Continue Reading SEC Adopts Final Rules for the Disclosure of Payments by Resource Extraction Issuers

On October 15, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission adopted new rules on position limits. As described in greater detail in Katten’s advisory, CFTC Adopts New Position Limit Requirements, the new rules (1) set forth federal position limits for 25 different futures contracts; (2) enhance the roles played by exchanges in setting limits and granting…

On July 24, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that the SEC and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) have adopted a final rule clarifying and implementing provisions relating to the orderly liquidation of certain brokers or dealers (covered broker-dealers) in the event the FDIC is appointed receiver under Title II of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
Continue Reading SEC and FDIC Adopt Final Rule on the Orderly Liquidation of Covered Broker-Dealers Under Dodd-Frank

On June 25, the five prudential regulators responsible for the margin rules for bank swap dealers (the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Farm Credit Administration and the Federal Housing Finance Agency) adopted one final rule and one interim final rule that modify their original framework for margining uncleared swaps.
Continue Reading Prudential Regulators Revise Initial Margin Rules for Uncleared Swaps

On May 19, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Global Markets Advisory Committee approved a report that contains several recommendations for action by the CFTC with respect to the implementation of its initial margin (IM) rules for uncleared swaps. The recommendations are focused on the unique challenges faced by small end users of swaps and entities that engage in swap activity through separate managed accounts (SMAs).
Continue Reading CFTC GMAC Recommendations Concerning Initial Margin for Swaps

On December 18, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted to propose new rules to require resource extraction issuers to disclose payments made to foreign governments or the US government for the commercial development of oil, natural gas or minerals, as required by Section 13(q) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the Exchange Act).
Continue Reading SEC Proposes New Rules to Implement Resource Extraction Disclosure Rules

On September 19, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted a package of new final rules and rule amendments dealing with recordkeeping and reporting requirements for security-based swap dealers (SBS dealers). In general, the SEC is requiring SBS dealers to create and maintain records with respect to security based-swaps in a manner consistent with current recordkeeping and record retention rules that apply to broker-dealers. The SEC is, however, providing alternate compliance mechanisms that will allow an SBS dealer that also is a swap dealer but is not a broker-dealer to comply with Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) rules instead and will allow a non-US SBS dealer to request permission to comply with its home country rules.
Continue Reading SEC Issues Security-Based Swap Recordkeeping and Reporting Rules

On September 17, the directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) approved a joint notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR) with respect to the prudential regulator margin rules for non-cleared swaps. The joint form of the NPR indicates that the other prudential swap regulators (the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Farm Credit Administration and the Federal Housing Finance Agency) will all be approving the same NPR in the near future.
Continue Reading FDIC Proposes Amendments to Prudential Regulator Swap Margin Rules