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the counterparty risk between the purchaser and seller in the
contract. In its guarantor role, Nasdaq Clearing has precisely
equal and offsetting claims to and from clearing members on
opposite sides of each contract, standing as the CCP on every
contract cleared. In accordance with the rules and regulations
of Nasdaq Clearing, clearing members’ open positions are
aggregated to create a single portfolio for which default fund
and margin collateral requirements are calculated. See “Default
Fund Contributions and Margin Deposits” below for further
discussion of Nasdaq Clearing’s default fund and margin
requirements.
Nasdaq Clearing maintains four member sponsored default
funds: one related to financial markets, one related to
commodities markets, one related to the seafood market, and a
mutualized fund. Under this structure, Nasdaq Clearing and its
clearing members must contribute to the total regulatory capital
related to the clearing operations of Nasdaq Clearing. This
structure applies an initial separation of default fund
contributions for the financial, commodities and seafood
markets in order to create a buffer for each market’s
counterparty risks. Simultaneously, a mutualized default fund
provides capital efficiencies to Nasdaq Clearing’s members
with regard to total regulatory capital required. See “Default
Fund Contributions” below for further discussion of Nasdaq
Clearing’s default fund. Power of assessment and a liability
waterfall also have been implemented. See “Power of
Assessment” and “Liability Waterfall” below for further
discussion. These requirements ensure the alignment of risk
between Nasdaq Clearing and its clearing members.
Default Fund Contributions and Margin Deposits
As of December 31, 2016, clearing member default fund
contributions and margin deposits were as follows:
December 31, 2016
Cash
Contributions
Non-Cash
Contributions
Total
Contributions
(in millions)
Default fund
contributions
$
314 $
89 $
403
Margin
deposits
2,987
3,713
6,700
Total
$
3,301 $
3,802 $
7,103
In accordance with its investment policy, of the total cash
contributions of $3,301 million, Nasdaq Clearing has invested
cash contributions of $137 million in reverse repurchase
agreements and $1,763 million in highly rated European, and
to a lesser extent, U.S. government debt securities or central
bank certificates. The remainder of this balance is held in cash.
Of the total default fund contributions of $403 million, Nasdaq
Clearing can utilize $332 million as capital resources in the
event of a counterparty default. The remaining balance of $71
million pertains to member posted surplus balances.
Default Fund Contributions
Contributions made to the default funds are proportional to the
exposures of each clearing member. When a clearing member
is active in more than one market, contributions must be made
to all markets’ default funds in which the member is active.
Clearing members’ eligible contributions may include cash and
non-cash contributions. Cash contributions received are held in
cash or invested by Nasdaq Clearing, in accordance with its
investment policy, either in highly rated government debt
securities, time deposits, central bank certificates or reverse
repurchase agreements with highly rated government debt
securities as collateral. Nasdaq Clearing maintains and manages
all cash deposits related to margin collateral. All risks and
rewards of collateral ownership, including interest, belong to
Nasdaq Clearing. Clearing members’ cash contributions are
included in default funds and margin deposits in the
Consolidated Balance Sheets as both a current asset and a
current liability. Non-cash contributions include highly rated
government debt securities that must meet specific criteria
approved by Nasdaq Clearing. Non-cash contributions are
pledged assets that are not recorded in the Consolidated Balance
Sheets as Nasdaq Clearing does not take legal ownership of
these assets and the risks and rewards remain with the clearing
members. These balances may fluctuate over time due to
changes in the amount of deposits required and whether
members choose to provide cash or non-cash contributions.
Assets pledged are held at a nominee account in Nasdaq
Clearing’s name for the benefit of the clearing members and
are immediately accessible by Nasdaq Clearing in the event of
a default. In addition to clearing members’ required
contributions to the default funds, Nasdaq Clearing is also
required to contribute capital to the default funds and overall
regulatory capital as specified under its clearinghouse rules. As
of December 31, 2016, Nasdaq Clearing committed capital
totaling $133 million to the member sponsored default funds
and overall regulatory capital, in the form of government debt
securities, which are recorded as financial investments, at fair
value in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The combined
regulatory capital of the clearing members and Nasdaq Clearing
will serve to secure the obligations of a clearing member and
may be used to cover losses sustained by a clearing member in
the event of a default.
Margin Deposits
Nasdaq Clearing requires all clearing members to provide
collateral, which may consist of cash and non-cash
contributions, to guarantee performance on the clearing
members’ open positions, or initial margin. In addition, clearing
members must also provide collateral to cover the daily margin
call if needed. See “Default Fund Contributions” above for
further discussion of cash and non-cash contributions.
Similar to default fund contributions, Nasdaq Clearing
maintains and manages all cash deposits related to margin
collateral. All risks and rewards of collateral ownership,
including interest, belong to Nasdaq Clearing. These cash
deposits are recorded in default funds and margin deposits in
the Consolidated Balance Sheets as both a current asset and