GFMA Commends CFTC’s LEI Designation

Release Date: July 24, 2012

Contact: Liz Pierce, 212.313.1173,
lpierce@gfma.org 

GFMA Commends CFTC’s LEI Designation  

New York, NY, July 24, 2012–GFMA today released the following statement in response to
the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) designation of DTCC-SWIFT as
the legal entity identifier (LEI) solution providers who will support issuance
of the CFTC Interim Compliant Identifiers (“CICIs”) as required by the U.S.
Swap Data Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements under the Dodd-Frank Act:

 “GFMA commends the
CFTC’s designation of DTCC-SWIFT as the CICI providers for reporting swap
transactions under their rule. These organizations have clearly demonstrated
their capability to deliver an effective legal entity identification system
that not only meets the requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act but could also be
implemented as a global solution.

“As laid out in our 2011 recommendation
to regulators, GFMA believes that a federated LEI system with a strong central utility
to ensure data quality is the best path forward. GFMA has recommended that DTCC
and SWIFT serve as this central utility and partner with ANNA and its network
of local national numbering agencies (NNA’s) to register, validate, and
maintain LEIs in the NNA’s home markets. This partnership
will ensure the highest quality data is available in the LEI database. Data
quality is essential for realizing the benefits of an LEI system. 

“As the Financial Stability Board
works to develop a global LEI solution, the industry remains committed to
working with regulators and stakeholders to be a productive participant in this
process. A uniform, globally consistent legal entity identification solution is
critical for improving risk management in the financial industry. It will give
regulators a powerful tool for monitoring systemic risk, and firms a better way
to monitor counterparty exposure.”

More information is available on the GFMA website: http://www.gfma.org/global-market-policies/financial-market-infrastructure/lei/.

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The Global Financial Markets Association (GFMA) brings
together three of the world’s leading financial trade associations to address
the increasingly important global regulatory agenda and to promote coordinated
advocacy efforts. The Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME) in
London and Brussels, the Asia Securities Industry & Financial Markets
Association (ASIFMA) in Hong Kong and the Securities Industry and Financial
Markets Association (SIFMA) in New York and Washington are, respectively, the
European, Asian, and North American members of GFMA. For more information,
visit http://www.gfma.org.