Buyers and sellers in exchange transactions rely on clearinghouses to intermediate transactions and to manage credit risks between trading parties. As such, clearinghouses promote transparency, efficiency, and stability by providing market-based pricing, daily settlement, and ensuring adequate capitalization for markets to function.Because of the critical role the CCPs serve to the operations, capitalization and integrity of financial markets, Congress designated clearinghouses as “Systemically Important Financial Market Utilities” (SIFMUs) — and therefore, subject to heightened regulatory scrutiny. 

Join us for a workshop that explains the multilateral systems that provide the infrastructure for transferring, clearing and settling payments, derivatives and other financial transactions among financial institutions and end users. Additionally, the program will include relevant case studies to demonstrate clearinghouse functions and the impact and outcome of actual clearing events.  

Learning Outcomes

After the wokshop you will be able to:

• Understand financial market infrastructure with an emphasis on the critical function and benefits of clearinghouse operations
• Describe the key roles of clearing parties including CCPs, clearing members, customers, and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
• Explain the principles of novation and how CCPs reduce processing costs, enable multilateral netting, prevent the accumulation of losses
• Describe the critical role that margin (both initial and variation) and the mandate of segregated funds play in ensure liquidity and market stability
• Know the basic portfolio margining methodologies at the CME, ICE and Options Clearing Corporation
• Understand the default management plans and resolution rules as required by CFTC
• Describe the CCP’s assessment powers and default waterfall used to satisfy a defaulting clearing member
• Be familiar with the cleared swaps and OTC markets, similarities, and differences
• Understand past bankruptcies and bankruptcy considerations

Who Should Attend

The workshop is suited for a broad range of participants including:

• Users of cleared derivatives markets such as institutional investors, money managers, producers/suppliers, as well as manufacturing and distribution companies
• Support, operations, sales, and marketing personnel at FCMs
• Public policymakers
• Staff in trading, risk management, financial and legal departments
• Potential users of futures, options and swaps markets

Level:  Fundamental

Duration:  3 hours total - 90 minutes per day on two (2) consecutive days. 

Delivery:  Live, virtual instruction.

IFM's short, multi-day sessions provides the flexibility to fit education into a busy workday. Sessions hours are convenient for most U.S. participants and many global attendees too.