Trade reporting requirements proposed for U.S. Treasury market

Regulatory reporting by FINRA members could provide important new information about day‑to‑day activity in both inter‑dealer and dealer‑to‑client markets

By: James Langton
May 17, 2016 December 19, 2017
10:15

U.S. authorities are looking to step up oversight of the U.S. Treasury market by requiring brokers to report their trades to a central repository.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Securities and Exchange Commission announced on Monday that they are working together to explore efficient and effective means of collecting U.S. Treasury cash market transaction information.

As part of those efforts, the agencies are requesting that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) consider a proposal to require its member brokers and dealers to report Treasury cash market transactions to a centralized repository.

“The Treasury cash market is vital for investors and other market participants,” says Mary Jo White, SEC chairwoman, in a statement. “Regulatory reporting by FINRA members could provide important new information about day‑to‑day activity in both inter‑dealer and dealer‑to‑client markets.”

Any proposal by FINRA to require reporting of Treasury cash market activity would be subject to review and approval by the SEC, in consultation with Treasury. A plan for collecting similar data from institutions that actively trade U.S. Treasuries but do not belong to FINRA will also be developed, the Treasury announcement notes.

“The need for more comprehensive official sector access to data, particularly with respect to Treasury cash market activity, is clear,” adds Antonio Weiss, counselor to U.S. Treasury secretary, Jacob Lew. “It is important to build on this growing consensus and, we are committed to having a comprehensive plan to collect cash market data in place by year end.”