82_FR_54644 82 FR 54423 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; ICE Clear Europe Limited; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change, Security Based Swap Submission, or Advance Notice Relating to Amendments to the ICE Clear Europe Collateral and Haircut Policy

82 FR 54423 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; ICE Clear Europe Limited; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change, Security Based Swap Submission, or Advance Notice Relating to Amendments to the ICE Clear Europe Collateral and Haircut Policy

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 221 (November 17, 2017)

Page Range54423-54425
FR Document2017-24935

Federal Register, Volume 82 Issue 221 (Friday, November 17, 2017)
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 221 (Friday, November 17, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54423-54425]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-24935]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-82063; File No. SR-ICEEU-2017-011]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; ICE Clear Europe Limited; Notice 
of Filing of Proposed Rule Change, Security Based Swap Submission, or 
Advance Notice Relating to Amendments to the ICE Clear Europe 
Collateral and Haircut Policy

November 13, 2017.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on November 2, 2017, ICE Clear Europe Limited (``ICE Clear Europe'') 
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'') the 
proposed rule changes described in Items I, II, and III below, which 
Items have been primarily prepared by ICE Clear Europe. The Commission 
is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule 
change from interested persons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Clearing Agency's Statement of the Terms of Substance of the 
Proposed Rule Change

    The principal purpose of the changes is to modify the ICE Clear 
Europe

[[Page 54424]]

Collateral and Haircut Policy to incorporate certain changes to the 
calculation of absolute collateral limits for bonds provided as 
Permitted Cover by Clearing Members. The changes also make certain 
clarifications and updates and add certain general provisions 
addressing overall risk appetite and risk limits.

II. Clearing Agency's Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis 
for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, ICE Clear Europe included 
statements concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule 
change and discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule 
change. The text of these statements may be examined at the places 
specified in Item IV below. ICE Clear Europe has prepared summaries, 
set forth in sections (A), (B), and (C) below, of the most significant 
aspects of such statements.

(A) Clearing Agency's Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis 
for, the Proposed Rule Change

(a) Purpose
    ICE Clear Europe proposes revising its Collateral and Haircut 
Policy (the ``Collateral and Haircut Policy'') to incorporate certain 
changes to the calculation of absolute collateral limits for bonds 
provided as Permitted Cover by Clearing Members and certain other 
revisions as described below. The amendments do not involve any changes 
to the ICE Clear Europe Clearing Rules or Procedures.
    The Collateral and Haircut Policy establishes a maximum amount of 
bonds from an individual issuer that ICE Clear Europe will accept from 
a Member Group (an ``Absolute Limit''). The Absolute Limit is designed 
to take into account the trading liquidity of the bond, and accordingly 
the ability of ICE Clear Europe to liquidate the collateral when 
required. Currently, the underlying data used in the calculation of the 
Absolute Limit is based on the bi-annual International Capital Market 
Associate repo survey of market participants (the ``ICMA Data''), as a 
proxy for secondary market trading activity. Under the revised 
Collateral and Haircut Policy, the Absolute Limit will be determined 
using actual secondary market trading volume data provided by ICE Data 
Services (the ``IDS Data''). The IDS Data is compiled from a wide range 
of market data sources for transactions in government and corporate 
bonds. In certain circumstances where official trading volume data is 
published from a primary source, such as a governmental or central 
bank, such data will be used in lieu of the IDS Data. (For example, for 
bonds issued by Canada and Japan, ICE Clear Europe will utilize data 
provided by the Bank of Canada and the Japan Securities Dealers 
Association, respectively, instead of IDS Data.) In either case, the 
Absolute Limit for each bond issuer and collateral type will be 10% of 
the average daily volume over the past three months, rounded to the 
nearest million. ICE Clear Europe believes that the revised approach 
will provide a more direct and accurate estimation of liquidity than 
under the current approach, which will facilitate calculation of 
conservative and appropriate absolute concentration limits.
    The revisions also provide that in order to capture price 
volatility information on a conservative basis, the haircut calculation 
methodology, which incorporates a historical VaR model, among other 
factors, will use a two-sided VaR estimation based on the largest 
absolute returns.
    The Collateral and Haircut Policy has also been amended to more 
clearly take into account the existence of ICE Clear Europe's 
approximately U.S. $1 billion in committed repo facilities. As under 
the existing policy, in certain circumstances the Clearing House may 
permit a Clearing Member to maintain a collateral bond position in 
excess of normal absolute limits, in reliance on the Clearing House's 
ability to obtain cash for any excess securities using the committed 
repo facility. The amendments clarify that the repo facilities are 
available at any time there is an intra-day liquidity need, and are not 
limited to use in case of Clearing Member default.
    The amendments also note certain particular scenarios in which the 
clearing risk department may, consistent with the current policy, 
consider other qualitative and quantitative factors in setting prudent 
haircuts. These include the need to clean the bond price input data to 
remove spurious effects caused by changes in the different underlying 
bonds used to build bond price time-series. In this regard, the time 
series of bond price data in some instances may be spliced together 
from bonds with the same maturities but certain differences in other 
terms. These differences may cause the bonds to trade at different 
price levels, which could introduce spurious price spikes into the time 
series. To avoid an effect on the calculated haircut levels, ICE Clear 
Europe removes such spurious price spikes from the time series. The 
policy also notes that the clearing house may also need to consider the 
impact of unexpected currency de-pegging events on the calculation of 
cross-currency FX haircuts (such as the Swiss franc de-pegging from the 
Euro in January 2015, which caused unexpected sharp movements in the 
underlying exchange rate), as such events may not be fully captured by 
the quantitative approach in the Collateral and Haircut Policy.
    In addition, the Collateral and Haircut Policy has been revised to 
add certain general provisions, consistent with the approach taken in 
other ICE Clear Europe policies, addressing overall risk appetite and 
risk limits in the context of the purposes of the Collateral and 
Haircut Policy. Certain references in the policy to internal ICE Clear 
Europe personnel, departments and committees have been updated. The 
amendments also provide further detail as to the process for annual 
independent validation and governance oversight of relevant models used 
to support the Collateral and Haircut Policy. The policy owner, with 
the support of risk department personnel, will be responsible for the 
continuous review and reporting of the risk profile of the policy. The 
policy will be reviewed at least annually by the CDS and F&O Risk 
Committees and approved by the Board. Any material changes to the 
policy must be discussed with the Executive Risk Committee, reviewed by 
the CDS and F&O Risk Committees and the Board Risk Committee and 
approved by the Board. A ``red-amber-green'' escalation process has 
also been implemented to handle identified risks or situations as they 
arise.
(b) Statutory Basis
    ICE Clear Europe believes that the changes described herein are 
consistent with the requirements of Section 17A of the Act \3\ and the 
regulations thereunder applicable to it, including the standards under 
Rule 17Ad-22,\4\ and in particular are consistent with the prompt and 
accurate clearance of and settlement of securities transactions and, to 
the extent applicable, derivative agreements, contracts and 
transactions, the safeguarding of securities and funds in the custody 
or control of ICE Clear Europe or for which it is responsible and the 
protection of investors and the public interest, within the meaning of 
Section 17A(b)(3)(F) of the Act.\5\ The amendments are intended, among 
other matters, to adopt a more robust and direct method for obtaining 
relevant bond trading volume data that is used

[[Page 54425]]

to determine concentration limits and to clarify certain other matters 
relating to calculation of haircuts and limits. The amendments also 
enhance the governance process around the Collateral and Haircut 
Policy. In ICE Clear Europe's view, the amendments will help ICE Clear 
Europe more clearly determine the liquidity of relevant bonds, which in 
turn will facilitate establishment of accurate concentration limits. As 
a result, ICE Clear Europe believes the amendments are consistent with 
the requirements of Section 17A(b)(3)(F) \6\ of the Act. In addition, 
for the foregoing reasons, the amendments will facilitate setting and 
enforcing appropriately conservative haircuts and concentration limits, 
and provide for a review of the sufficiency of such haircuts and limits 
not less than annually, within the meaning of Rule 17Ad-22(e)(5).\7\
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    \3\ 15 U.S.C. 78q-1.
    \4\ 17 CFR 240.17Ad-22.
    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78q-1(b)(3)(F).
    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78q-1(b)(3)(F).
    \7\ 17 CFR 240.17Ad-22(e)(5).
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(B) Clearing Agency's Statement on Burden on Competition

    ICE Clear Europe does not believe the proposed changes to the rules 
would have any impact, or impose any burden, on competition not 
necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the purpose of the Act. ICE 
Clear Europe is adopting the amendments to the Collateral and Haircut 
Policy in order to enhance the calculations of concentration limits and 
haircuts and make certain other governance and related enhancements to 
the Collateral and Haircut Policy. The amendments will apply to all 
Clearing Members and products. ICE Clear Europe does not believe the 
amendments would materially affect the cost of clearing, adversely 
affect access to clearing in these products for Clearing Members or 
their customers, or otherwise adversely affect competition in clearing 
services. Although the amendments may change the haircuts or 
concentration limits for particular bonds, which may affect the costs 
and benefits of using those bonds as collateral, ICE Clear Europe 
believe that such changes are appropriate in light of the risk 
management enhancements provided by the revised policy. As a result, 
ICE Clear Europe believes that any impact or burden on competition from 
such amendments would be appropriate in furtherance of the purpose of 
the Act.

(C) Clearing Agency's Statement on Comments on the Proposed Rule Change 
Received From Members, Participants or Others

    Written comments relating to the proposed changes to the rules have 
not been solicited or received. ICE Clear Europe will notify the 
Commission of any written comments received by ICE Clear Europe.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 
Commission Action

    Within 45 days of the date of publication of this notice in the 
Federal Register or within such longer period up to 90 days (i) as the 
Commission may designate if it finds such longer period to be 
appropriate and publishes its reasons for so finding or (ii) as to 
which the self-regulatory organization consents, the Commission will:
    (A) By order approve or disapprove the proposed rule change or
    (B) institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule 
change should be disapproved.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and 
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule 
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of 
the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml) or
     Send an email to [email protected]. Please include 
File Number SR-ICEEU-2017-011 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities 
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE., Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-ICEEU-2017-011. This 
file number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To 
help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently, 
please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on 
the Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all 
written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are 
filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to 
the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other 
than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the 
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for Web site viewing and 
printing in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of 
10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available 
for inspection and copying at the principal office of ICE Clear Europe 
and on ICE Clear Europe's Web site at https://www.theice.com/notices/Notices.shtml?regulatoryFilings.
    All comments received will be posted without change. Persons 
submitting comments are cautioned that we do not redact or edit 
personal identifying information from comment submissions. You should 
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All 
submissions should refer to File Number SR-ICEEU-2017-011 and should be 
submitted on or before December 8, 2017.
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    \8\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\8\
Eduardo A. Aleman,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-24935 Filed 11-16-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8011-01-P



                                                                                    Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 221 / Friday, November 17, 2017 / Notices                                                           54423

                                                summarized below. The Commission                                        HOUR BURDEN FOR REPORTS ON                               enhance the quality, utility, and clarity
                                                plans to submit this existing collection                                  FORM N–CSR—Continued                                   of the information collected; and (d)
                                                of information to the Office of                                                                                                  ways to minimize the burden of the
                                                Management and Budget (‘‘OMB’’) for                                  Total annual hour burden for                                collection of information on
                                                                                                                       all funds ...............................     4 174,085
                                                extension and approval.                                                                                                          respondents, including through the use
                                                   Form N–CSR (17 CFR 249.331 and                                                                                                of automated collection techniques or
                                                274.128) is a combined reporting form                                 In total, the Commission estimates it                      other forms of information technology.
                                                used by registered management                                      will take 174,085 burden hours per year                       Consideration will be given to
                                                investment companies (‘‘funds’’) to file                           for all funds to prepare and file reports                     comments and suggestions submitted in
                                                certified shareholder reports under the                            on Form N–CSR. Based on the                                   writing within 60 days of this
                                                Investment Company Act of 1940 (15                                 Commission’s estimate of 174,085                              publication.
                                                U.S.C. 80a–1 et seq.) (‘‘Investment                                burden hours and an estimated wage                              Please direct your written comments
                                                Company Act’’) and the Securities                                  rate of approximately $324 per hour,5                         to Pamela Dyson, Chief Information
                                                Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78a et                             the total internal annual cost to                             Officer, Securities and Exchange
                                                                                                                   registrants of the hour burden for                            Commission, c/o Remi Pavlik-Simon,
                                                seq.) (‘‘Exchange Act’’). Specifically,
                                                                                                                   complying with Form N–CSR                                     100 F Street NE., Washington, DC
                                                Form N–CSR is to be used for reports
                                                                                                                   requirements is approximately $56                             20549; or send an email to: PRA_
                                                under section 30(b)(2) of the Investment
                                                                                                                   million.6                                                     Mailbox@sec.gov.
                                                Company Act (15 U.S.C. 80a–29(b)(2))                                  Estimates of average burden hours
                                                and section 13(a) or 15(d) of the                                                                                                  Please direct your written comments
                                                                                                                   and costs are made solely for purposes                        to Pamela Dyson, Director/Chief
                                                Exchange Act (15 U.S.C. 78m(a) and                                 of the Paperwork Reduction Act, and are
                                                78o(d)), filed pursuant to rule 30b2–1(a)                                                                                        Information Officer, Securities and
                                                                                                                   not derived from a comprehensive or                           Exchange Commission, C/O Remi
                                                under the Investment Company Act (17                               even representative survey or study of
                                                CFR 270.30b2–1(a)). Reports on Form                                                                                              Pavlik-Simon, 100 F Street NE.,
                                                                                                                   the costs of Commission rules and                             Washington, DC 20549; or send an email
                                                N–CSR are to be filed with the                                     forms. Compliance with the information
                                                Securities and Exchange Commission                                                                                               to: PRA_Mailbox@sec.gov.
                                                                                                                   collection requirements of Form N–CSR
                                                (‘‘Commission’’) no later than 10 days                             is mandatory. Responses to the                                  Dated: November 14, 2017.
                                                after the transmission to stockholders of                          collection of information will not be                         Eduardo A. Aleman,
                                                any report that is required to be                                  kept confidential. An agency may not                          Assistant Secretary.
                                                transmitted to stockholders under rule                             conduct or sponsor, and a person is not                       [FR Doc. 2017–24945 Filed 11–16–17; 8:45 am]
                                                30e–1 under the Investment Company                                 required to respond to a collection of                        BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
                                                Act (17 CFR 270.30e–1). The                                        information unless it displays a
                                                information filed with the Commission                              currently valid OMB control number.
                                                permits the verification of compliance                                Written comments are invited on: (a)                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
                                                with securities law requirements and                               Whether the collection of information is                      COMMISSION
                                                assures the public availability and                                necessary for the proper performance of                       [Release No. 34–82063; File No. SR–ICEEU–
                                                dissemination of the information.                                  the functions of the Commission,                              2017–011]
                                                   The current total annual burden hour                            including whether the information has
                                                inventory for Form N–CSR is 172,899                                practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the                    Self-Regulatory Organizations; ICE
                                                hours.1 The hour burden estimates for                              Commission’s estimate of the burden of                        Clear Europe Limited; Notice of Filing
                                                preparing and filing reports on Form N–                            the collection of information; (c) ways to                    of Proposed Rule Change, Security
                                                CSR are based on the Commission’s                                                                                                Based Swap Submission, or Advance
                                                experience with the contents of the                                   2 This estimate is based on the following                  Notice Relating to Amendments to the
                                                form. The number of burden hours may                               calculation: 11,856 management investment                     ICE Clear Europe Collateral and
                                                vary depending on, among other things,                             companies = (1,594 exchange-traded funds—eight                Haircut Policy
                                                the complexity of the filing and whether                           organized as unit investment trusts + 750 closed-
                                                                                                                   end funds + 481 money market funds + 9,039 other              November 13, 2017.
                                                preparation of the reports is performed                            mutual funds).
                                                by internal staff or outside counsel.                                 3 This estimate is based on the following
                                                                                                                                                                                    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the
                                                   The Commission’s new estimate of                                calculation: 750 hours = (750 closed-end funds × 1            Securities Exchange Act of 1934
                                                burden hours that will be imposed by                               hour per closed-end fund).                                    (‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2
                                                Form N–CSR is as follows:
                                                                                                                      4 This estimate is based on the following
                                                                                                                                                                                 notice is hereby given that on November
                                                                                                                   calculation: 174,085 hours = 750 hours + (11,856              2, 2017, ICE Clear Europe Limited (‘‘ICE
                                                                                                                   funds × 14.62 burden hours per fund per year).
                                                     HOUR BURDEN FOR REPORTS ON                                       5 The Commission’s estimate concerning the wage
                                                                                                                                                                                 Clear Europe’’) filed with the Securities
                                                            FORM N–CSR                                             rate is based on salary information for the securities        and Exchange Commission
                                                                                                                   industry compiled by the Securities Industry and              (‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule
                                                Number of funds .........................            2 11,856
                                                                                                                   Financial Markets Association. The estimated wage             changes described in Items I, II, and III
                                                                                                                   figure is based on published rates for compliance             below, which Items have been primarily
                                                Number of filings per fund per                                     attorneys and senior programmers, modified to
                                                  year .........................................               2   account for an 1,800-hour work year and inflation;            prepared by ICE Clear Europe. The
                                                Hour burden per fund per filing ..                          7.31   multiplied by 5.35 to account for bonuses, firm size,         Commission is publishing this notice to
                                                Hour burden per fund per year                                      employee benefits, and overhead; and adjusted to              solicit comments on the proposed rule
                                                  (7.31 hours per filing × 2 fil-                                  account for the effects of inflation, yielding effective      change from interested persons.
                                                  ings per year) ..........................             14.62      hourly rates of $340 and $308, respectively. See
                                                                                                                   Securities Industry and Financial Markets                     I. Clearing Agency’s Statement of the
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES




                                                Additional aggregate annual bur-
                                                                                                        3 750
                                                                                                                   Association, Report on Management & Professional              Terms of Substance of the Proposed
                                                  den for closed-end funds ........                                Earnings in the Securities Industry 2013. We
                                                                                                                   estimate that compliance attorneys and senior                 Rule Change
                                                                                                                   programmers would divide their time equally,                     The principal purpose of the changes
                                                  1 This estimate is based on the following                        yielding an estimated hourly wage rate of $324.
                                                calculations: 172,899 hours = (11,856 management                   ($340 per hour for compliance attorneys + $308 per            is to modify the ICE Clear Europe
                                                investment companies × 14.52 hour burden per                       hour for senior programmers) ÷ 2 = $324 per hour.
                                                fund per year) + 750 additional hours for closed-                     6 174,085 hours × $324 per hour = $56,403,540                1 15   U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
                                                end funds.                                                         per year.                                                       2 17   CFR 240.19b–4.



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                                                54424                       Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 221 / Friday, November 17, 2017 / Notices

                                                Collateral and Haircut Policy to                        primary source, such as a governmental                also need to consider the impact of
                                                incorporate certain changes to the                      or central bank, such data will be used               unexpected currency de-pegging events
                                                calculation of absolute collateral limits               in lieu of the IDS Data. (For example, for            on the calculation of cross-currency FX
                                                for bonds provided as Permitted Cover                   bonds issued by Canada and Japan, ICE                 haircuts (such as the Swiss franc de-
                                                by Clearing Members. The changes also                   Clear Europe will utilize data provided               pegging from the Euro in January 2015,
                                                make certain clarifications and updates                 by the Bank of Canada and the Japan                   which caused unexpected sharp
                                                and add certain general provisions                      Securities Dealers Association,                       movements in the underlying exchange
                                                addressing overall risk appetite and risk               respectively, instead of IDS Data.) In                rate), as such events may not be fully
                                                limits.                                                 either case, the Absolute Limit for each              captured by the quantitative approach
                                                                                                        bond issuer and collateral type will be               in the Collateral and Haircut Policy.
                                                II. Clearing Agency’s Statement of the                  10% of the average daily volume over                    In addition, the Collateral and Haircut
                                                Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the                the past three months, rounded to the                 Policy has been revised to add certain
                                                Proposed Rule Change                                    nearest million. ICE Clear Europe                     general provisions, consistent with the
                                                  In its filing with the Commission, ICE                believes that the revised approach will               approach taken in other ICE Clear
                                                Clear Europe included statements                        provide a more direct and accurate                    Europe policies, addressing overall risk
                                                concerning the purpose of and basis for                 estimation of liquidity than under the                appetite and risk limits in the context of
                                                the proposed rule change and discussed                  current approach, which will facilitate               the purposes of the Collateral and
                                                any comments it received on the                         calculation of conservative and                       Haircut Policy. Certain references in the
                                                proposed rule change. The text of these                 appropriate absolute concentration                    policy to internal ICE Clear Europe
                                                statements may be examined at the                       limits.                                               personnel, departments and committees
                                                places specified in Item IV below. ICE                     The revisions also provide that in                 have been updated. The amendments
                                                Clear Europe has prepared summaries,                    order to capture price volatility                     also provide further detail as to the
                                                set forth in sections (A), (B), and (C)                 information on a conservative basis, the              process for annual independent
                                                below, of the most significant aspects of               haircut calculation methodology, which                validation and governance oversight of
                                                such statements.                                        incorporates a historical VaR model,                  relevant models used to support the
                                                                                                        among other factors, will use a two-                  Collateral and Haircut Policy. The
                                                (A) Clearing Agency’s Statement of the                  sided VaR estimation based on the                     policy owner, with the support of risk
                                                Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the                largest absolute returns.                             department personnel, will be
                                                Proposed Rule Change                                       The Collateral and Haircut Policy has              responsible for the continuous review
                                                (a) Purpose                                             also been amended to more clearly take                and reporting of the risk profile of the
                                                                                                        into account the existence of ICE Clear               policy. The policy will be reviewed at
                                                   ICE Clear Europe proposes revising its               Europe’s approximately U.S. $1 billion                least annually by the CDS and F&O Risk
                                                Collateral and Haircut Policy (the                      in committed repo facilities. As under                Committees and approved by the Board.
                                                ‘‘Collateral and Haircut Policy’’) to                   the existing policy, in certain                       Any material changes to the policy must
                                                incorporate certain changes to the                      circumstances the Clearing House may                  be discussed with the Executive Risk
                                                calculation of absolute collateral limits               permit a Clearing Member to maintain a                Committee, reviewed by the CDS and
                                                for bonds provided as Permitted Cover                   collateral bond position in excess of                 F&O Risk Committees and the Board
                                                by Clearing Members and certain other                   normal absolute limits, in reliance on                Risk Committee and approved by the
                                                revisions as described below. The                       the Clearing House’s ability to obtain                Board. A ‘‘red-amber-green’’ escalation
                                                amendments do not involve any                           cash for any excess securities using the              process has also been implemented to
                                                changes to the ICE Clear Europe                         committed repo facility. The                          handle identified risks or situations as
                                                Clearing Rules or Procedures.                           amendments clarify that the repo                      they arise.
                                                   The Collateral and Haircut Policy                    facilities are available at any time there
                                                establishes a maximum amount of                         is an intra-day liquidity need, and are               (b) Statutory Basis
                                                bonds from an individual issuer that ICE                not limited to use in case of Clearing                  ICE Clear Europe believes that the
                                                Clear Europe will accept from a Member                  Member default.                                       changes described herein are consistent
                                                Group (an ‘‘Absolute Limit’’). The                         The amendments also note certain                   with the requirements of Section 17A of
                                                Absolute Limit is designed to take into                 particular scenarios in which the                     the Act 3 and the regulations thereunder
                                                account the trading liquidity of the                    clearing risk department may, consistent              applicable to it, including the standards
                                                bond, and accordingly the ability of ICE                with the current policy, consider other               under Rule 17Ad–22,4 and in particular
                                                Clear Europe to liquidate the collateral                qualitative and quantitative factors in               are consistent with the prompt and
                                                when required. Currently, the                           setting prudent haircuts. These include               accurate clearance of and settlement of
                                                underlying data used in the calculation                 the need to clean the bond price input                securities transactions and, to the extent
                                                of the Absolute Limit is based on the bi-               data to remove spurious effects caused                applicable, derivative agreements,
                                                annual International Capital Market                     by changes in the different underlying                contracts and transactions, the
                                                Associate repo survey of market                         bonds used to build bond price time-                  safeguarding of securities and funds in
                                                participants (the ‘‘ICMA Data’’), as a                  series. In this regard, the time series of            the custody or control of ICE Clear
                                                proxy for secondary market trading                      bond price data in some instances may                 Europe or for which it is responsible
                                                activity. Under the revised Collateral                  be spliced together from bonds with the               and the protection of investors and the
                                                and Haircut Policy, the Absolute Limit                  same maturities but certain differences               public interest, within the meaning of
                                                will be determined using actual                         in other terms. These differences may                 Section 17A(b)(3)(F) of the Act.5 The
                                                secondary market trading volume data                    cause the bonds to trade at different
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES




                                                                                                                                                              amendments are intended, among other
                                                provided by ICE Data Services (the ‘‘IDS                price levels, which could introduce                   matters, to adopt a more robust and
                                                Data’’). The IDS Data is compiled from                  spurious price spikes into the time                   direct method for obtaining relevant
                                                a wide range of market data sources for                 series. To avoid an effect on the                     bond trading volume data that is used
                                                transactions in government and                          calculated haircut levels, ICE Clear
                                                corporate bonds. In certain                             Europe removes such spurious price                      3 15 U.S.C. 78q–1.
                                                circumstances where official trading                    spikes from the time series. The policy                 4 17 CFR 240.17Ad–22.
                                                volume data is published from a                         also notes that the clearing house may                  5 15 U.S.C. 78q–1(b)(3)(F).




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                                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 221 / Friday, November 17, 2017 / Notices                                                54425

                                                to determine concentration limits and to                 (C) Clearing Agency’s Statement on                    Commission and any person, other than
                                                clarify certain other matters relating to                Comments on the Proposed Rule                         those that may be withheld from the
                                                calculation of haircuts and limits. The                  Change Received From Members,                         public in accordance with the
                                                amendments also enhance the                              Participants or Others                                provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be
                                                governance process around the                              Written comments relating to the                    available for Web site viewing and
                                                Collateral and Haircut Policy. In ICE                    proposed changes to the rules have not                printing in the Commission’s Public
                                                Clear Europe’s view, the amendments                      been solicited or received. ICE Clear                 Reference Room, 100 F Street NE.,
                                                will help ICE Clear Europe more clearly                  Europe will notify the Commission of                  Washington, DC 20549, on official
                                                determine the liquidity of relevant                      any written comments received by ICE                  business days between the hours of
                                                bonds, which in turn will facilitate                     Clear Europe.                                         10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the
                                                establishment of accurate concentration                                                                        filing also will be available for
                                                                                                         III. Date of Effectiveness of the                     inspection and copying at the principal
                                                limits. As a result, ICE Clear Europe
                                                                                                         Proposed Rule Change and Timing for                   office of ICE Clear Europe and on ICE
                                                believes the amendments are consistent                   Commission Action                                     Clear Europe’s Web site at https://www.
                                                with the requirements of Section
                                                                                                           Within 45 days of the date of                       theice.com/notices/Notices.shtml
                                                17A(b)(3)(F) 6 of the Act. In addition, for                                                                    ?regulatoryFilings.
                                                the foregoing reasons, the amendments                    publication of this notice in the Federal
                                                will facilitate setting and enforcing                    Register or within such longer period                    All comments received will be posted
                                                                                                         up to 90 days (i) as the Commission may               without change. Persons submitting
                                                appropriately conservative haircuts and
                                                                                                         designate if it finds such longer period              comments are cautioned that we do not
                                                concentration limits, and provide for a
                                                                                                         to be appropriate and publishes its                   redact or edit personal identifying
                                                review of the sufficiency of such
                                                                                                         reasons for so finding or (ii) as to which            information from comment submissions.
                                                haircuts and limits not less than                                                                              You should submit only information
                                                                                                         the self-regulatory organization
                                                annually, within the meaning of Rule                                                                           that you wish to make available
                                                                                                         consents, the Commission will:
                                                17Ad–22(e)(5).7                                            (A) By order approve or disapprove                  publicly. All submissions should refer
                                                (B) Clearing Agency’s Statement on                       the proposed rule change or                           to File Number SR–ICEEU–2017–011
                                                Burden on Competition                                      (B) institute proceedings to determine              and should be submitted on or before
                                                                                                         whether the proposed rule change                      December 8, 2017.
                                                   ICE Clear Europe does not believe the                 should be disapproved.                                  For the Commission, by the Division of
                                                proposed changes to the rules would                                                                            Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
                                                                                                         IV. Solicitation of Comments
                                                have any impact, or impose any burden,                                                                         authority.8
                                                on competition not necessary or                            Interested persons are invited to                   Eduardo A. Aleman,
                                                appropriate in furtherance of the                        submit written data, views, and                       Assistant Secretary.
                                                purpose of the Act. ICE Clear Europe is                  arguments concerning the foregoing,                   [FR Doc. 2017–24935 Filed 11–16–17; 8:45 am]
                                                adopting the amendments to the                           including whether the proposed rule
                                                                                                                                                               BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
                                                Collateral and Haircut Policy in order to                change is consistent with the Act.
                                                enhance the calculations of                              Comments may be submitted by any of
                                                concentration limits and haircuts and                    the following methods:                                SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
                                                make certain other governance and                        Electronic Comments                                   COMMISSION
                                                related enhancements to the Collateral                     • Use the Commission’s Internet
                                                and Haircut Policy. The amendments                       comment form (http://www.sec.gov/                     [Release No. 34–82058; File No. SR–IEX–
                                                will apply to all Clearing Members and                   rules/sro.shtml) or                                   2017–39]
                                                products. ICE Clear Europe does not                        • Send an email to rule-comments@
                                                believe the amendments would                                                                                   Self-Regulatory Organizations:
                                                                                                         sec.gov. Please include File Number SR–               Investors Exchange LLC; Notice of
                                                materially affect the cost of clearing,                  ICEEU–2017–011 on the subject line.
                                                adversely affect access to clearing in                                                                         Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of
                                                                                                         Paper Comments                                        Proposed Rule Change To Adopt Rules
                                                these products for Clearing Members or
                                                                                                                                                               Pertaining to Certain Listing
                                                their customers, or otherwise adversely                    • Send paper comments in triplicate
                                                                                                                                                               Regulatory Reporting and Operational
                                                affect competition in clearing services.                 to Secretary, Securities and Exchange
                                                                                                                                                               Requirements
                                                Although the amendments may change                       Commission, 100 F Street NE.,
                                                the haircuts or concentration limits for                 Washington, DC 20549–1090.                            November 13, 2017.
                                                particular bonds, which may affect the                   All submissions should refer to File                     Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) 1 of the
                                                costs and benefits of using those bonds                  Number SR–ICEEU–2017–011. This file                   Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
                                                as collateral, ICE Clear Europe believe                  number should be included on the                      ‘‘Act’’) 2 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,3
                                                that such changes are appropriate in                     subject line if email is used. To help the            notice is hereby given that on October
                                                light of the risk management                             Commission process and review your                    31, 2017, the Investors Exchange LLC
                                                enhancements provided by the revised                     comments more efficiently, please use                 (‘‘IEX’’ or the ‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the
                                                policy. As a result, ICE Clear Europe                    only one method. The Commission will                  Securities and Exchange Commission
                                                believes that any impact or burden on                    post all comments on the Commission’s                 (the ‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule
                                                competition from such amendments                         Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/                change as described in Items I and II
                                                                                                         rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES




                                                would be appropriate in furtherance of                                                                         below, which Items have been prepared
                                                the purpose of the Act.                                  submission, all subsequent                            by the self-regulatory organization. The
                                                                                                         amendments, all written statements                    Commission is publishing this notice to
                                                                                                         with respect to the proposed rule
                                                                                                         change that are filed with the                          8 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
                                                                                                         Commission, and all written                             1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
                                                  6 15   U.S.C. 78q–1(b)(3)(F).                          communications relating to the                          2 15 U.S.C. 78a.
                                                  7 17   CFR 240.17Ad–22(e)(5).                          proposed rule change between the                        3 17 CFR 240.19b–4.




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Document Created: 2017-11-17 05:14:33
Document Modified: 2017-11-17 05:14:33
CategoryRegulatory Information
CollectionFederal Register
sudoc ClassAE 2.7:
GS 4.107:
AE 2.106:
PublisherOffice of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
SectionNotices
FR Citation82 FR 54423 

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