April 9, 2013

CFTC’s Division of Market Oversight Provides No-Action Relief from Swap Data Reporting Requirements to Swap Counterparties that are not Swap Dealers or Major Swap Participants

Washington, DC – The Division of Market Oversight (DMO) of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced the issuance of a no-action letter providing swap counterparties that are not swap dealers or major swap participants (“non-SD/MSP counterparties”), with certain relief from the reporting requirements of the CFTC’s swap data reporting rules, which are set forth at Parts 43, 45 and 46 of the CFTC’s regulations.

Swap dealers and major swap participants are already required to be in compliance with their reporting obligations under the swap data reporting rules. The rules establish a compliance date of April 10, 2013, for non-SD/MSP counterparties.

DMO’s no-action letter provides non-SD/MSP counterparties that are not “financial entities”, as defined in Section 2(h)(7)(C) of the Commodity Exchange Act (“non-financial swap counterparties”), with reporting relief under Parts 43 and 45: (i) for interest rate and credit swaps, until July 1, 2013, and (ii) for equity, foreign exchange and other commodity swaps, until August 19, 2013. In addition, the no-action letter provides non-financial swap counterparties with reporting relief under Part 46, for all swap asset classes, until October 31, 2013.

Consistent with the compliance schedule established in the swap data reporting rules, non-SD/MSP counterparties that are “financial entities”, as defined in Section 2(h)(7)(C) of the Commodity Exchange Act (“financial swap counterparties”), must be in compliance with their Part 43 and 45 reporting obligations with respect to interest rate and credit swaps on April 10, 2013. DMO’s no-action letter provides financial swap counterparties with reporting relief under Parts 43 and 45, with respect to equity, foreign exchange and other commodity swaps, until May 29, 2013. In addition, the no-action letter provides financial swap counterparties with reporting relief under Part 46, for all swap asset classes, until September 30, 2013.

As a condition of relying on any relief from Part 43 and 45 reporting obligations that is provided in DMO’s no-action letter, a non-SD/MSP counterparty must, within one month after the end of the applicable relief period, backload and report to a swap data repository all swap transaction data, for the applicable relief period, that the non-SD/MSP counterparty would have been required to report pursuant to Part 45 in the absence of the no-action relief.

Last Updated: April 9, 2013