Sweden’s largest fund manager Swedbank Robur has begun clearing interest rate swaps through Nasdaq Clearing, the first central counterparty (CCP) to be approved by EU regulators earlier this year.
Though the mandatory clearing of interest rate swaps has not yet been enforced by the European Securities and Markets Authority, some buy-side firms are using clearing services in preparation for the tough new rules.
“Whenever possible we seek to clear our derivative exposures,” said Peter Gustafsson, Head of Fixed Income at Swedbank Robur.
“This strategy is primarily adopted by Swedbank Robur in an ongoing effort to reduce counterparty risk and increase operational efficiencies. We also see this as a proactive step to becoming compliant with upcoming regulatory requirements.”
The fund manager began clearing through broker Swedbank, with instruments available for clearing Swedish Krona-denominated interest rate swaps (IRS), overnight index swaps and forward rate agreements.
Nasdaq plans to expand the service to also include Danish Krona, Norwegian Krona and Euro denominated instruments during 2015.
“We are pleased to see new buy-side clients starting to clear IRS, especially since Swedbank Robur is one of the most active buy-side investors in the Nordics,” said Magnus Billing, Senior Vice President and Head of Nordic Fixed Income at Nasdaq.
“We look forward to continuing to serve Swedbank Robur with our clearing services.”