CFTC working on market-based swaps rules, Chairman Giancarlo says

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is working on more market-based rules for swaps executions, Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo said Thursday as he released a white paper on the subject at the International Swaps and Derivatives Association annual meeting in Miami.

In an interview with ISDA CEO Scott O'Malia, Mr. Giancarlo said the CFTC's focus "is what's in the best interest of the markets. Our mission is market integrity and market health," according to a CFTC news release.

Mr. Giancarlo said in the release he is committed to a deliberative process: "We have an ambitious timetable, and we will get this done, but we will do this right."

The white paper combines academic research and market activity with the agency's experience implementing swaps reform dictated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. Those will form the basis of recommendations to improve the current swaps market framework that strikes a balance between systemic stability and market vibrancy, the paper said.

Financial regulators "have a duty to apply the policy prescriptions in ways that enhance markets and their underlying vibrancy, diversity and resiliency," and to continuously review past regulatory moves, the authors note.

The five areas explored in the paper are swaps central counterparties, rules on swaps reporting and execution, swap dealer capital, and end user exception.

The paper, "Swaps Regulation Version 2.0: An Assessment of the Current Implementation of Reform and Proposals for Next Steps," is on the CFTC website.