Launch of the Clearing & Settlement Working Group (CAS-WG)

The Financial Services Club is launching a Clearing & Settlement Working Group (CAS-WG), in partnership with the Realization Group, with first sponsor BT.

The Clearing & Settlement Working Group:  Terms of Reference

The aim of the CAS-WG is to debate and discuss all aspects of clearing and settlement infrastructures and processes.  The organisation and operation will be similar to the MiFID Joint Working Group and its Subject Groups that operated in the build-up to the implementation of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID)[1], with the intention of bringing together the top industry standards bodies, trade associations, infrastructures, investment firms and companies involved in Clearing and Settlement.

The CAS-WG will provide an opportunity for open discussion and debate amongst senior market practitioners and service providers on issues affecting Clearing and Settlement. 

More importantly, the aim is to create multiple specialist groups that will work on specific areas of interest – standards, technologies, reference data, custodial services, etc – between each of the main plenary meetings of the CAS-WG.

Specialist Subject Groups

The subject groups and their subject headings will be determined at the inaugural meeting on 29^th February.  Anyone who wishes to propose a group, lead a group or be a member of one of the groups can volunteer their participation and input at the inaugural meeting.

The subject groups will be facilitated through support from the Realisation Group and any organisation that wishes to be involved can propose their support before, during or after the inaugural meeting.

We believe that these subject groups are particularly important today as Clearing & Settlement, and in particular Clearing, will be massively impacted by new regulations being drafted and implemented across the world such as Basel III, Dodd-Frank, the Vickers Report and the MiFID II.

The aim of the subject groups is to provide specific input to the regulatory bodies – including the FSA, its successor bodies the PRA and CBA, and Michel Barnier’s team in the European Commission – on the business and technology implications of implementing the regulations in draft and final form, with the intention of ensuring these regulations are practical, appropriate and effective.

The output of the subject groups therefore will be actions that are clearly practical about the details of the impact of new regulatory developments upon clearing and settlement operations, infrastructures, standards and technologies.  

Meetings

The first meeting will be held at BT’s offices in Newgate Street on the afternoon of February 29^th where we will have four panels discussing:

• Volker/Vickers/MiFID II and impacts on post-trade operations and IT, particularly with regard to OTC Derivatives and Clearing
• T2S – problems of change and implementation for settlement
• Giovannini Group Recommendations, Innovation & Technology – what progress has been made?
• Standards in Post-trade operations

Registration starts from 13:30 and the first meeting will begin at 14:00 with panellists from  clearing and settlement infrastructures, investment firms, standards bodies and industry associations and more attending.

After the meeting on 29^th February we expect to have quarterly plenary meetings thereafter to update members on the sub-group activities.

There will also be regular subject group meetings, the number of which will be dependent upon the outcome of the first meeting.

Membership of the CAS-WG

We aim to run the CAS-WG so that attendance and involvement is completely free and open.  It is also aimed to be inclusive of all participants in Clearing and Settlement operations.

Attendees and active members are expected to be from all parts of the financial industry – buy side, sell side, exchanges, CCPs, CSDs, standards bodies, solutions providers, technology  providers, telecommunications, consultancies, law firms, accounting firms and more.

Sponsorship opportunities

As participation is intended to be free, we aim to cover the costs of running the CAS-WG through sponsorship.  Sponsorship is open to any organisation that wishes to be seen as a thought-leader in this area, or who wishes to engage and influence the market participants outlined above.

To register to join the inaugural meeting or if you are interested in sponsorship opportunities, send an email to chris.skinner@fsclub.co.uk.