Financial counterparties with a limited volume of derivatives activity should be given until 2019 to comply with new central clearing requirements for over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives. according to a report published on Monday by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).
Regulators are adopting central clearing requirements as a way of reducing systemic risk in the wake of the financial crisis.
The ESMA is proposing to postpone the phase-in period for “a range of reasons,” including: firms that don’t do a lot of business in the markets are having a hard time establishing central clearing arrangements; continued legal and regulatory uncertainties in this area; and the activities of these firms is not considered systemic.
As a result, regulators have decided that for firms that are defined as counterparties with limited derivatives activity, the newly proposed compliance date would be June 21, 2019.
The European Commission must still approve the decision.