On April 14, 2020, FINMA communicated in its Guidance 04/2020 that it extends the initial margin implementation dates for phase 5 and 6 by one year.

On April 3, 2020, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision ("BCBS") and the International Organization of Securities Commissions ("IOSCO") have agreed to delay the initial margin implementation dates for phase 5 and 6 to allow firms to focus resources on combatting the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak on their businesses.

FINMA supports the recommendation made by the Basel Committee and IOSCO and has, based on Article 131 para. 6 FMIO, extended the two final implementation dates for the mandatory exchange of initial margins under the FMIA (set out in Article 131 para. 5 let.dbis and e FMIO) by one year.

The duty to exchange initial margins under the FMIA shall now apply for counterparties (other than small non-financial counterparties) whose aggregated month-end average gross position of noncentrally-cleared OTC derivatives at financial or insurance group level exceeds:

  • Phase 5: CHF 50 billion for each of the months of March, April and May 2021: from September 1, 2021
  • Phase 6: CHF 8 billion for each of the months of March, April and May 2022: from September 1, 2022

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.