Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of
Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
Donna Nordenberg
Fellow
Marc Labonte
Specialist in Macroeconomic Policy
December 10, 2010
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
R41529
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress
Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
Summary
The U.S. financial system processes millions of transactions each day representing daily transfers
of trillions of dollars, securities, and other assets to facilitate purchases and payments. Concerns
had been raised, even prior to the recent financial crisis, about the vulnerability of the U.S.
financial system to infrastructure failure. These concerns about the “plumbing” of the financial
system were heightened following the market disruptions of the recent crisis.
The financial market infrastructure consists of the various systems, networks, and technological
processes that are necessary for conducting and completing financial transactions. Title VIII of
the Dodd-Frank Act, P.L. 111-203, the Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Supervision Act of
2010, introduces the term “financial market utility” (FMU or utility) for those multilateral
systems that transfer, clear, or settle payments, securities, or other financial transactions among
financial institutions (FI) or between an FMU and a financial institution. Utilities and FIs transfer
funds and settle accounts with other financial institutions to facilitate normal day-to-day
transactions occurring in the U.S. economy. Those transfers include payroll and mortgage
payments, foreign currency exchanges, purchases of U.S. treasury bonds and corporate securities,
and derivatives trades. Further, financial institutions engage in commercial paper and securities
repurchase agreements (repo) markets that contribute to liquidity in the U.S. economy. In the
United States, some of the key payment, clearing, and settlement (PCS) systems are operated by
the Federal Reserve, and other systems are operated by private sector organizations.
In Title VIII of the Dodd-Frank Act, which was enacted on July 21, 2010, Congress added a new
regulatory framework for the FMUs and PCS activities (of FIs) designated by the Financial
Stability Oversight Council as systemically important. Title VIII expands the Federal Reserve’s
role, in coordination with those of other prudential regulators, in the supervision, examination,
and rule enforcement with respect to those FMUs and PCS activities of financial institutions.
Additionally, FMUs may borrow from the discount window of the Federal Reserve in certain
unusual and exigent circumstances.
Although Title VIII primarily affects the scope of regulatory powers, certain provisions directly
affect a utility’s business operations. For example, Title VIII allows FMUs to maintain accounts
at a Federal Reserve Bank and requires FMUs to provide governmental supervisors with advance
notice of changes to their rules or operations. In addition, Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act
imposes requirements that will significantly affect the business of clearinghouses in the over-the-
counter (OTC) derivatives (swaps) market. In Title VII, the Wall Street Transparency and
Accountability Act of 2010, Congress established a new regulatory framework for the previously
unregulated market of swap transactions. By requiring clearing of certain swap transactions
through central counterparties (CCPs or clearinghouses), Title VII is expected to increase the
volume of transactions processed by clearing systems subject to Title VIII.
This report outlines the changes to the supervision of key market infrastructure that are embodied
in the Dodd-Frank Act. It is intended to be used as a reference document for persons interested in
different parts of the financial system “plumbing,” and how these systems are overseen and
regulated following the recent enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act. It will not be updated.
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Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1
Basics of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement ............................................................................... 3
Payment Systems .................................................................................................................. 3
Clearing Systems .................................................................................................................. 4
Settlement Systems ............................................................................................................... 6
Major Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems in the United States ....................................... 7
Systems Operated by the Federal Reserve ............................................................................. 7
Systems Operated by the Private Sector................................................................................. 8
Risks of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems and Activities............................................. 9
Systemic Risk ....................................................................................................................... 9
Other Risks ......................................................................................................................... 11
Regulatory Oversight Prior to Title VIII .................................................................................... 12
Recommendations to Strengthen Oversight ......................................................................... 12
Prudential Regulators .......................................................................................................... 13
Supervisory Policies............................................................................................................ 14
International Regulatory Standards...................................................................................... 15
Title VIII of the Dodd-Frank Act ............................................................................................... 16
Purpose............................................................................................................................... 17
Definitions and Exclusions.................................................................................................. 17
Designation of Systemic Importance by the Financial Stability Oversight Council............... 18
Risk Management Standards ............................................................................................... 19
Operations of Designated Financial Market Utilities............................................................ 20
Examination and Enforcement ............................................................................................ 20
Regulatory Coordination ..................................................................................................... 21
Title VIII Implementation ......................................................................................................... 22
Financial Stability Oversight Council .................................................................................. 22
Federal Reserve .................................................................................................................. 23
CFTC and SEC ................................................................................................................... 23
Impact on Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems and Activities .................................. 24
Appendixes
Appendix. Selected Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems in the United States................. 25
Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 32
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Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
Introduction
On July 21, 2010, Title VIII of the Dodd-Frank Act,1 the Payment, Clearing, and Settlement
Supervision Act of 2010, became effective upon enactment. Title VIII authorizes the Federal
Reserve, in coordination with other federal agencies, to supervise and regulate the infrastructure
that enables financial intermediaries to process and complete financial transactions.
Payment, clearing, and settlement (PCS) activities facilitate a variety of financial transactions
such as transferring payments for and completing retail purchases, foreign exchange transactions,
securities transactions, and derivatives trades. Prior to the Dodd-Frank Act, various federal
regulatory authorities had oversight responsibilities for certain systems or entities engaged in
processing those financial transactions. Some key systems in the United States have been
operated by the Federal Reserve Banks and others by the private sector. PCS systems serve a
critical role in the financial services sector and the broader economy. In the United States,
payment and settlement systems on a typical business day settle transactions valued at over $13
trillion, according to a 2008 report by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.2
Events during 2008, including the failures of Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual in
September 2008 and the subsequent rescue of AIG drew attention to the functioning of the U.S.
financial system during periods of stress. The interconnectedness of large financial intermediaries
deemed “too-big-to-fail” heightened concerns about systemic risk, which can be understood as
the failure of one firm leading to system-wide disruptions. The channel through which systemic
risk can spread, as discussed in this report, is a disruption such as the failure of a “too-big-to-fail”
institution cascading through PCS systems or activities.
The failure of Lehman Brothers seriously shocked domestic and global financial markets and
severely strained interbank lending markets. Many investors were unable to access their funds
held by Lehman and are pursuing those funds through bankruptcy proceedings in multiple
jurisdictions.3 Lehman Brothers’ default on its commercial paper (similar to short-term loans)
caused a severe disruption in that market, which prevented many corporate issuers from rolling
over their commercial paper debt as it matured.4
AIG, a major insurance company, experienced a crisis stemming from a subsidiary that was a
leading underwriter of credit default swaps (CDS), a type of over-the-counter derivative.5 CDS
provide protection to buyers against credit events such as an issuer’s default on corporate debt
obligations and structured securities. CDS had been traded bilaterally between institutions
through an over-the-counter market system that regulatory authorities had criticized for its
inefficiencies and lack of transparency. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York undertook efforts
to encourage industry participants to voluntarily improve the infrastructure of the OTC
1 P.L. 111-203, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
2 U.S. Department of the Treasury, Blueprint for a Modernized Financial Regulatory Structure, Washington, DC,
March 2008, p. 102. Hereafter cited as 2008 Blueprint.
3 Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, Governmental Rescues of “Too-Big-To-Fail” Financial Institutions,
Preliminary Staff Report, August 31, 2010, p. 24, http://fcic.gov/reports/pdfs/2010-0831-Governmental-Rescues.pdf.
4 Ibid., p. 25.
5 Ibid. AIG was also exposed to significant losses from its securities lending operation.
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derivatives market in recent years. In 2006, Alan Greenspan, then-Chairman of the Federal
Reserve, reportedly said that he was appalled that people were relying on scraps of paper to
record transactions, a practice which some blamed for causing a backlog of unconfirmed
contracts.6
Title VIII reflects recommendations by the previous and current administrations to give the
Federal Reserve explicit statutory oversight authority with respect to elements of the financial
infrastructure in the United States. Title VIII introduces the term “financial market utility” (FMU
or utility) for those multilateral systems that transfer, clear, or settle payments, securities, or other
financial transactions among financial institutions (FI) or between a FMU and a financial
institution. Title VIII addresses the federal regulatory oversight of systemically important
payment, clearing, and settlement (PCS) systems and PCS activities of financial institutions that
facilitate various financial transactions. Financial transactions processed daily in the U.S.
economy include payment transfers ranging from small-dollar retail purchase transactions to
large-value purchases of securities; clearing transactions for derivatives trading; and securities
settlement.
Title VIII primarily addresses the regulatory framework rather than affecting the flows of funds
through existing payment and settlement systems. With regard to clearing, however, there are
some changes as Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act, the Wall Street Transparency and
Accountability Act of 2010, directly affects the business of clearing of OTC derivatives
instruments known as swaps. In Title VII, Congress established new regulatory requirements
specifically applicable to the derivatives clearing systems and activities for OTC swap
transactions.7
Title VIII regulatory powers apply specifically to those financial market utilities and PCS
activities (of financial institutions) that are systemically important. Prior to the enactment of Title
VIII, the Federal Reserve derived its oversight responsibilities for payment and settlement
systems from a range of statutory responsibilities for monetary policy, banking supervision,
lender of last resort, and provision of payment and settlement services.8
Some Representatives opposed Title VIII and struck the title governing PCS supervision from the
financial reform bill that the House of Representatives passed in December 2009. Concerns held
by some opponents of the title may have included a sense that the U.S. financial infrastructure
was adequately supervised, or that the title might have given too much discretionary authority to
the Federal Reserve. Other reservations may have included the view that Title VIII was
unnecessary in light of the Federal Reserve’s efforts to encourage firms to voluntarily strengthen
infrastructure procedures in various markets, and the absence of a PCS-related breakdown in
September 2008.
This report begins by introducing the basics of PCS systems and activities and presents the major
systems operating in the United States. The report then describes the different risks, including
6 John Glover and Hamish Risk, “Exchange-Traded Credit Derivatives Poised to Curb Bank Monopoly,” Bloomberg,
December 11, 2006.
7 See CRS Report R41398, The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act: Title VII, Derivatives,
by Mark Jickling and Kathleen Ann Ruane.
8 Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, Central Bank Oversight of
Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications No. 68, Basel, Switzerland, May 2005, p. 13, http://www.bis.org/
publ/cpss68.pdf. Hereafter cited as BIS, Central Bank Oversight.
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systemic risk, that are commonly associated with PCS systems and activities. The next part of the
report discusses the oversight authority of the FMU and FI regulators that was in place prior to
the enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act, after which the report summarizes the changes made by
Title VIII, including the new regulatory oversight authority of the Fed. The final part of the report
addresses implementation of Title VIII by relevant agencies and the impact of Title VIII on FMUs
and FIs.
Basics of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement
Title VIII expands Federal Reserve authority with respect to firms conducting one or more of the
three named activities, payment, clearing, or settlement, where the Financial Stability Oversight
Council (Council) designates the firms or the activities (when conducted by financial institutions)
as systemically important. The existing infrastructure in the United States for those activities
consists of systems operated by the Federal Reserve through the Federal Reserve Banks, and by
the private sector. This section describes the definitions and functions of these systems and
activities that may partly overlap.
The following types of systems and activities are covered by Title VIII:
• payment systems, which transfer funds electronically from one institution to
another;
• clearing systems (or clearinghouses), which in the derivatives market often
transfer credit risk to a central counterparty (CCP) (clearinghouse) from each
counterparty to a trade; and
• settlement systems, which complete transactions such as securities trades.
Payment Systems
In general terms, a payment system consists of the means for transferring money between
suppliers and users of funds through the use of cash substitutes such as checks, drafts, and
electronic funds transfers. The Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems (CPSS),
consisting of representatives from several international regulatory authorities, has developed
generally accepted definitions of standard payment system terminology.9 As defined by the CPSS,
a payment system is a system that consists of a set of instruments, banking procedures, and,
typically, interbank funds transfer systems that ensure the circulation of money.
In the United States, the Federal Reserve Banks and the private sector operate payment systems
that process retail or wholesale transactions.10 Retail payment systems facilitate a consumer’s
9 Bank for International Settlements, Committee for Payment and Settlement Systems, A Glossary of Terms Used in
Payments and Settlement Systems, Basel, Switzerland, March 2003, http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss00b.pdf. Hereafter
cited as BIS, Glossary.
10 For background information on retail and wholesale payment systems, see Federal Financial Institutions Examination
Council, Retail Payment Systems, IT Examination Handbook, Washington, DC, February 2010, http://www.ffiec.gov/
ffiecinfobase/booklets/Retail/retail.pdf, hereafter cited as FFIEC, Retail Handbook; and Federal Financial Institutions
Examination Council, Wholesale Payment Systems, IT Examination Handbook, Washington, DC, July 2004,
http://www.ffiec.gov/ffiecinfobase/booklets/Wholesale/whole.pdf, hereafter cited as FFIEC, Wholesale Handbook.
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ability to purchase goods and services, pay bills, obtain cash through withdrawals and advances,
and make person-to-person payments. Retail payments tend to generate a large number of
transactions that have relatively small value per transaction and are processed through electronic
funds transfer systems, including automated clearing house (ACH) transactions and debit and
credit card transactions at the point of sale.11
The ACH is an electronic funds transfer (EFT) system that processes credit and debit transactions
such as direct deposit payroll and consumer bill payments. ACH is the primary EFT system used
by federal governmental agencies to make payments, according to the Financial Management
Service (FMS), a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury.12 Providers of ACH
services include the Federal Reserve Banks through the FedACH Service and The Electronic
Payments Network, which is the only private-sector ACH operator in the United States.13 Rules
governing the ACH system for participating financial institutions are established by NACHA –
The Electronic Payments Association, a trade association,14 which oversees the ACH Network,
and by the Federal Reserve.15 NACHA reports that more than 18.7 billion ACH payments were
made in 2009.16
Wholesale payment systems generally support domestic and international commercial activities
and financial market related activities. Large-value, wholesale funds transfer systems are used for
purchasing, selling, or financing securities transactions; disbursing or repaying loans; settling real
estate transactions; and making large-value, time-critical payments (e.g., settling interbank
purchases, Federal funds sales, or foreign exchange transactions).17 Wholesale payments tend to
have a large per-transaction value and a relatively small number of transactions generated daily
and are processed through payment systems such as the Fedwire Funds Service (Fedwire)18 and
The Clearing House Interbank Payments System (CHIPS).19 Wholesale payment systems also
provide final clearing and settlement for a variety of retail payment systems at the end of the
business day. Financial institutions use intra-bank systems to initiate, process, and transmit large-
value payment orders internally and to interface with Fedwire and CHIPS.
Clearing Systems
Clearing systems conduct various activities related to payment, currency, securities or derivatives
transactions. The CPSS defines a clearing system as a set of procedures whereby financial
11 FFIEC, Retail Handbook, p. 4. Retail payment instruments include check-based payments, card-based and other
electronic payments such as electronic cash and electronic benefits transfer, and ACH transactions.
12 See Financial Management Service website, http://www.fms.treas.gov/ach/index.html.
13 See Electronic Payments Network website, http://www.epaynetwork.com/cms/services/001456.php.
14 The trade association was formerly known as the National Automated Clearing House Association.
15 ACH transfers between financial institutions are not considered check transactions, and thus are not subject to laws
governing check processing. FFIEC, Retail Handbook, p. 10.
16 NACHA—The Electronic Payments Association, ACH Network Statistics, Herndon, VA, 2010,
http://www.nacha.org/c/ACHntwkstats.cfm, visited December 8, 2010.
17 FFIEC, Wholesale Handbook, p. 3.
18 Fedwire participants maintain a reserve or securities account with a Federal Reserve Bank. Direct access to Federal
Reserve payment services is generally limited to deposit-taking institutions; however, non-depository institutions may
indirectly use those services as customers of Federal Reserve payment services participants. Ibid, p.4.
19 CHIPS is operated by The Clearing House, which also operates the Electronic Payments Network, a private-sector
provider of ACH services. CHIPS’ website is http://www.chips.org/home.php.
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institutions present and exchange data or documents relating to funds or securities transfers to
other financial institutions at a single location (clearing house). The procedures often include a
mechanism to facilitate the establishment of net positions of participant obligations for
settlement, a process known as netting.20 A clearing house is a central location or central
processing mechanism through which financial institutions agree to exchange payment
instructions or other financial obligations such as securities. The term clearing, which is the
process of transmitting, reconciling and possibly confirming payment orders or security transfer
instructions prior to settlement, sometimes is used imprecisely to include settlement.
Two of the major types of clearing houses in the United States process securities and derivatives
transactions. For securities transactions, a clearing corporation or a depository must register with
the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a clearing agency (CA).21 Clearing
corporations clear member transactions, enable automated settlement of those trades, and often
act as intermediaries in making settlements. A clearing corporation guarantees the completion of
all transactions and interposes itself as a party to both sides of a transaction.22
Depositories maintain ownership records of securities on the books of the depository, hold
securities certificates (physical securities are held in vaults), and make securities deliveries for
settlements requiring delivery. Currently, the Depository Trust Company (DTC) is the primary
U.S. securities depository.23 The DTC is a subsidiary of The Depository & Clearing Corporation
(DTCC),24 which also operates the Fixed Income Clearing Corporation (FICC). FICC clears
government and mortgage-backed securities through its clearing corporation divisions known as
the Government Securities Division (GSD) and the Mortgage-Backed Securities Division
(MBSD). In addition, the National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC), which is a subsidiary
of DTCC, is a registered clearing corporation regulated by the SEC that provides clearing and
settlement services for corporate and municipal securities.
In the futures and options markets, a clearing house, known as a derivatives clearing organization
(DCO), must register with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to provide
clearing services with respect to futures contracts and options on those futures contracts traded on
a designated contract market and swap transactions traded over-the-counter.25 A DCO enables the
parties to a derivatives transaction (counterparties) to transfer credit risk to the clearing house, for
example, through novation. Novation occurs when a single derivatives contract between two
counterparties becomes two separate contracts: one between the clearing house and each
counterparty. Currently, there are 19 DCOs registered with the CFTC.26
20 The Committee on Payment and Settlement Services defines netting as an agreed offsetting of positions or
obligations by trading partners or participants. Netting reduces a large number of individual positions or obligations to
a smaller number and may take several forms that have varying degrees of legal enforceability in the event of default of
one of the parties. BIS, Glossary.
21 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Clearing Agencies, Washington, DC, http://www.sec.gov/divisions/
marketreg/mrclearing.shtml.
22 Ibid.
23 Ibid.
24 The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, About DTCC, Our Structure, New York, New York,
http://www.dtcc.com/about/subs/.
25 U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Clearing Organizations, Derivatives Clearing Organizations,
Washington, DC, http://www.cftc.gov/IndustryOversight/ClearingOrganizations/index.htm.
26 Ibid.
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Settlement Systems
The CPSS defines settlement, in part, as the completion of a transaction wherein the seller
transfers securities or financial instruments to the buyer and the buyer transfers money to the
seller. A settlement may be final or provisional. A settlement system is used to facilitate the
settlement of transfers of funds or financial instruments. In a real-time gross settlement system
(RTGS), processing and settling occur on an order-by-order basis in real time instead of through
netting of transaction positions. A securities settlement system is a particular kind of settlement
system that consists of the full set of institutional arrangements for confirmation, clearance and
settlement of securities trades and safekeeping of securities.
In the United States, the Federal Reserve Banks and the private sector operate different settlement
systems for securities transactions. Securities processing within financial institutions and the
major markets accounts for the majority of large-value payments.27
The major securities markets in the United States include the markets for government securities,
corporate equities and bonds, money market instruments, and municipal bonds. Those
instruments are generally traded through organized exchanges or through over-the-counter dealer
markets.28 Depository institutions play several important roles in securities clearing and
settlement. In addition to participating in clearing and settlement transactions, depository
institutions act as custodians, issuing and paying agents, and settling banks for their customers.
The U.S. government securities market includes all primary and secondary market transactions in
securities issued by the U.S. Treasury, certain federal government agencies, and federal
government-sponsored enterprises.29 Trading in government securities is conducted over-the-
counter between brokers, dealers, and investors, which means that parties trade on a bilateral
basis with one another rather than on an organized exchange. The Federal Reserve operates a
book-entry system known as the National Book-Entry System, or the Fedwire Securities Service,
through which nearly all U.S. government securities are issued and transferred.30 The Fixed
Income Clearing Corporation (FICC) also supports the selling and trading of U.S. government
securities.
Corporations and municipal governments also issue various types of securities, including
corporate equities and bonds, commercial paper,31 and municipal bonds. Various securities are
traded on established U.S. exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange, the American
27 Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, Wholesale Payment Systems, IT Examination Handbook
Presentations, Washington, DC, July 2004, p. 3, http://www.ffiec.gov/ffiecinfobase/presentations/
whole_presntation.pdf.
28 FFIEC, Wholesale Handbook, p. 11.
29 Ibid.
30 Ibid. The Federal Reserve Banks in their capacity as fiscal agents facilitate the issuance of book-entry securities to
the Fedwire Securities Service participants. The Fedwire Securities system maintains in electronic form all marketable
U.S. Treasury securities as well as many federal government agency, GSE, and certain international organizations’
securities. See Federal Reserve Bank Services, Fedwire Securities Service, http://www.frbservices.org/serviceofferings/
fedwire/fedwire_security_service.html.
31 Commercial paper is a money market instrument issued by prime-rated non-financial and financial companies with
maturities ranging from one to 270 days. Commercial paper is issued through dealer placements or direct placements
with investors. Commercial paper is an important source of short-term funding for financial corporations and municipal
governments and secondary market trading is limited. FFIEC, Wholesale Handbook, p. 14.
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Stock Exchange, and the NASDAQ system, and on over-the-counter markets. The National
Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC) provides clearing, settlement, and other services for
virtually all broker-to-broker trades involving equities, corporate and municipal debt, and certain
other instruments traded on over-the-counter markets and exchanges.32
Major Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems
in the United States
The Federal Reserve and the private sector operate the systems that constitute the infrastructure
for the processing and completion of financial transactions in the United States. Listed below are
some of the major systems currently operating in the United States. Additional information
regarding selected systems, including recent volume levels, is set forth in an Appendix to this
report. In the future, new and evolving types of financial products, transactions and instruments
could lead to new payment, clearing, and settlement systems and activities. It is notable that Title
VIII does not consolidate or centralize authority for the approval of the formation of new utilities
or PCS activities with the Federal Reserve or any single regulatory agency.
Systems Operated by the Federal Reserve
The Federal Reserve Banks operate the following three wholesale payment services and an
electronic payment system providing ACH services to depository institutions:
• Fedwire® Funds Service
• Fedwire Securities Service, also known as the National Book-Entry System
(NBES)
• National Settlement Service (NSS)
• FedACH® Service
The Federal Reserve Banks began providing services using telecommunications in the early
1900s to transfer funds between accounts maintained in different Federal Reserve Districts.33 In
1981, the Federal Reserve was required by law to price most of the Federal Reserve Bank
financial services, including funds transfers and securities safekeeping, and to give nonmember
depository institutions direct access to those services.34 The Fedwire services enable depository
institutions, the U.S. Treasury and other government agencies to transfer funds and book-entry
securities nationwide. The Fedwire Funds Services is a real-time gross settlement (RTGS) system
to settle funds electronically between banks; the Fedwire Securities Service provides issuance,
settlement, and transfer services for U.S. Treasury securities and other government-related
securities; and the National Settlement Service, which is a multilateral settlement service, is used
32 The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, About DTCC, National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC),
New York, New York, http://www.dtcc.com/about/subs/nscc.php.
33 Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Fedwire and National Settlement Services, New York, New York.
http://www.newyorkfed.org/aboutthefed/fedpoint/fed43.html.
34 The relevant law is the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980, P.L. 96-221, enacted
on March 31, 1980.
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by clearinghouses, financial exchanges, and other clearing and settlement groups. The Fedwire
funds and securities transactions are processed in real time when received and are final and
irrevocable when settled. By increasing the efficiency of Federal Reserve open market operations
and helping to keep the market for government securities liquid, the Fedwire Securities Service
plays a significant role in how the Federal Reserve conducts monetary policy,35 which is
commonly understood as the regulation of the money supply and interest rates by central banks.
Open market operations, which are purchases and sales of U.S. Treasury and federal agency
securities, are the Federal Reserve’s principal tool for implementing monetary policy.36
Systems Operated by the Private Sector
Key private-sector systems in the United States include those operated by The Clearing House
and The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC). The Clearing House operates an
interbank funds transfer system known as CHIPS and an ACH system known as EPN. DTCC
operates the Depository Trust Company (DTC), the major U.S. depository, and clearing
corporations for government, mortgage-backed, and corporate and municipal securities. These
three DTCC entities provide the primary infrastructure for the clearance, settlement, and custody
of the vast majority of transactions in the United States involving equities, corporate debt,
municipal bonds, money market instruments, and government securities.37 The major components
of the United States financial infrastructure include the following systems:
• Clearing House Interbank Payments System (CHIPS), owned by The Clearing
House
• Electronic Payments Network, ACH operator owned by The Clearing House
• The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) and subsidiaries:
• Depository Trust Company (DTC)
• National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC)
• Fixed Income Clearing Corporation operating the Government Securities
Division (GSD) and the Mortgage-Backed Securities Division (MBSD)
• CLS Bank (foreign exchange)
• The Options Clearing Corporation (equity derivatives)
• Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Clearing (credit default and interest rate
swaps)
• ICE Trust (credit default swaps)
• Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), an
international financial messaging system headquartered in Belgium with U.S.
operations
35 Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Fedwire and National Settlement Services, New York, New York,
http://www.newyorkfed.org/aboutthefed/fedpoint/fed43.html.
36 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Open Market Operations, Washington, DC, January 26, 2010,
http://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/openmarket.htm.
37 2008 Blueprint, p. 211.
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The Appendix to this report provides additional information regarding these systems.
Risks of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems
and Activities
Section 802 of the Dodd-Frank Act reflects concern about risks related to PCS systems and
activities. For example, the proper functioning of the financial markets is considered dependent
upon safe and efficient arrangements for the clearing and settlement of payment, securities, and
other financial transactions. Although financial market utilities that conduct or support
multilateral PCS activities may reduce risks for their participants and the broader financial
system, such utilities may also concentrate and create new risks. Congress also found that PCS
activities conducted by financial institutions present risks to the participating financial institutions
and to the financial system. Congress found it necessary to enhance the regulation and
supervision of utilities and PCS activities that are systemically important, in part, to reduce
systemic risk and to promote safety and soundness.
Further, both the Bush and Obama Administrations addressed the risks arising from payment and
settlement systems in proposing financial regulatory reforms. In those proposals for heightened
supervision by the Federal Reserve, the U.S. Department of the Treasury noted concerns about
the ability of payment and settlement systems to contribute to financial crises, rather than reduce
them, potentially threatening the stability of U.S. and foreign financial markets.38
Systemic Risk
There is no single definition of systemic risk. The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland has
indicated that a firm is considered systemically important if its failure would have economically
significant spillover effects which, if left unchecked, could destabilize the financial system and
have a negative impact on the real economy.39 In order to provide more guidance in practice,
however, the Cleveland Fed proposes using the following four factors, other than size, for
designating firms as systemically important: contagion, correlation, concentration, and conditions
(context). The International Monetary Fund summarizes systemic risk as the large losses to other
financial institutions induced by the failure of a particular interconnected institution.40 Congress
has addressed systemic risk in a number of provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act, in part, through the
establishment of the Financial Stability Oversight Council and the regulation of systemically
significant firms.41
38 See 2008 Blueprint, p. 101; U.S. Department of the Treasury, Financial Regulatory Reform, A New Foundation:
Rebuilding Financial Supervision and Regulation, Washington, DC, June 2009, p. 52,
http://www.financialstability.gov/docs/regs/FinalReport_web.pdf. Hereafter cited as 2009 New Foundation.
39 James B. Thomson, On Systemically Important Financial Institutions and Progressive Systemic Mitigation, Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Policy Discussion Paper Number 27, August 2009, p. 1, http://www.clevelandfed.org/
research/policydis/pdp27.pdf.
40 International Monetary Fund, Meeting New Challenges to Stability and Building a Safer System, Global Financial
Stability Report, April 2010, p. 2, http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/gfsr/2010/01/index.htm.
41 For a discussion of provisions addressing systemic risk, see CRS Report R41384, The Dodd-Frank Wall Street
Reform and Consumer Protection Act: Systemic Risk and the Federal Reserve, by Marc Labonte.
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Systemic risk can be increased by the transmission of financial system disruptions through
payment and settlement systems. The global payment and settlement infrastructure consists of a
network of domestic and cross-border systems that are increasingly connected through a wide
array of complex interrelationships.42 Financial market utilities, financial institutions, and other
system participants are increasingly connected as operators of and participants in such systems.
Payment and settlement risks have the potential to impose losses on the entity at the source of a
disruption as well as on its direct counterparties or customers, and in some circumstances, their
counterparties or customers.43 Financial institutions engage in a range of financial activities that
require the settlement of obligations and transfer of assets, which can lead to principal credit
losses or replacement costs when these transfers do not occur as expected.44 The entity that is the
source of an initial credit, liquidity or operational disruption, such as a failed securities trade or
operational outage, may face lost revenue. That entity’s customers and counterparties may face
replacement costs from the purchase of additional funds or securities at a potentially higher
market price to complete their own obligations. A settlement institution may also redistribute
payment and settlement risks back to its participants through loss-sharing arrangements that may
apply to participants that had no transactions with the failing entity. Further, some types of
interdependencies among systems can allow an initial disruption to activate a chain of different
risks and transmit an initial disruption through multiple systems.
The interdependencies of financial intermediaries thus increase the potential for disruptions to
spread quickly and widely, including across multiple systems. Several factors over the past few
decades have contributed to the development of such interdependencies.45 These factors include
the globalization and regional integration of the financial sector, consolidation of financial
institutions, and advances in computer and telecommunications technology.
Events during the financial crisis of 2008 included the transmission of disruptions arising from
the failure of large, interconnected financial institutions through payment, clearing, and
settlement systems. In the view of some international banking regulators, the financial market
infrastructures generally performed well during the recent financial crisis and did much to help
prevent the crisis from becoming even more serious.46 Those regulators have argued that when
robust financial market infrastructures can enable settlement to take place without significant
counterparty risk, such systems help markets to remain liquid even during times of financial
stress.47
Some observers argue that another source of systemic risk could be the clearing house that
functions as a central counterparty, i.e., the buyer to every seller and the seller to every buyer, in
derivatives transactions.48 That risk arguably could increase because of the Title VII provisions
42 Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, The Interdependencies of
Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications No. 84, Basel, Switzerland, June 2008, p. iii, http://www.bis.org/
publ/cpss84.pdf.
43 Ibid., p. 27.
44 Ibid.
45 Ibid., p. 14.
46 Bank for International Settlements, “Standards for Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems: Review by CPSS-
IOSCO,” Basel, Switzerland, press release, February 2, 2010, http://www.bis.org/press/p100202.htm. Hereafter cited as
BIS, Standards Review Press Release.
47 Ibid.
48 See, e.g., Elena Logutenkova and Fabio Benedetti-Valentini, “Blankfein Says Clearinghouses May Increase Risks in
(continued...)
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requiring the clearing of swaps transactions under certain circumstances. In addition, academics
are studying whether the use of central clearing counterparties actually reduces counterparty
risk.49 In Title VIII, Congress indicated that financial market utilities may also concentrate and
create new risks and stated that such utilities must be well designed and operated in a safe and
sound manner.50
Other Risks
In addition to systemic risk, the Federal Reserve has identified the following four basic risks in
payment and settlement systems:
• credit risk, which is the risk that a counterparty will not settle an obligation for
full value either when due, or anytime thereafter;
• liquidity risk, which is the risk that a counterparty will not settle an obligation
for full value when due;
• operational risk, which is the risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed
internal processes, people, and systems, or from external events, and which
includes various physical and information security risks; and
• legal risk, which is the risk of loss because of the unexpected application of a
law or regulation or because a contract cannot be enforced.51
These risks can, but need not, lead to systemic risk. Due to the potential for significant loss
resulting from the large dollar value of wholesale payments, regulators expect financial
institutions to implement effective and appropriate risk management policies, procedures, and
controls to protect against such risks as well as reputation and strategic risk.52 Institutions
involved with wholesale payments must also manage legal and compliance risk under laws
administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control imposing economic sanctions against
specified foreign countries and individuals and by the record-keeping and reporting requirements
of the Bank Secrecy Act, as amended by the USA PATRIOT Act.53
Operational risks arising from wholesale payments include risks relating to internal and
operational controls, audit, information security, business continuity planning, and vendor and
third-party management. Security risk may arise from intra-bank funds transfers. A financial
institution’s funds transfer operation, often known as “the wire room,” is responsible for
originating, transmitting, and receiving payment orders. Financial institutions must establish the
(...continued)
Crisis,” Bloomberg Businessweek, September 29, 2010, http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-09-29/blankfein-
says-clearinghouses-may-increase-risks-in-crisis.html.
49 Darrell Duffie and Haoxiang Zhu, “Does a Central Clearing Counterparty Reduce Counterparty Risk?,” Graduate
School of Business, Stanford University, Updated March 6, 2010, p. http://www.stanford.edu/~duffie/DuffieZhu.pdf.
50 Section 802(a)(2) of the Dodd-Frank Act, P.L. 111-203.
51 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Policy on Payment System Risk, Washington, DC, as amended
effective June 16, 2010, http://federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/psr_policy.htm.
52 See FFIEC, Wholesale Handbook, p. 21.
53 Ibid., p. 27.
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authenticity of incoming and outgoing funds transfer messages and the time of receipt of
incoming payment orders.54
Regulatory Oversight Prior to Title VIII
Recommendations to Strengthen Oversight
Prior to the enactment of Title VIII, United States and international regulatory authorities called
for the strengthening of the supervisory oversight of the financial infrastructure for payment and
settlement systems. The U.S. Department of the Treasury issued reports during both the Bush and
Obama Administrations recommending that oversight of systemically important payment and
settlement systems should be given to the Federal Reserve.55
Prior to Title VIII, an entity’s supervisory agencies, and for certain entities, the Federal Reserve,
conducted prudential oversight of payment, clearing, and settlement systems and activities of
financial institutions.56 The Federal Reserve relied on “a patchwork of authorities, largely derived
from [its] role as a banking supervisor, as well as on moral suasion” as a means to help ensure
that payment and settlement systems had necessary procedures and controls in place to manage
their risks.57 In 2008, the Chairman of the Federal Reserve System asked Congress for authority
to oversee systemically important payment and settlement systems, noting that many major
central banks around the world have that explicit statutory authority.58 In that testimony,
Chairman Bernanke stated that “the stability of the broader financial system requires key payment
and settlement systems to operate smoothly under stress and to effectively manage counterparty
risk.”59
The Federal Reserve, together with other regulators and the private sector, was also engaged in
efforts to strengthen various financial infrastructures prior to the Dodd-Frank Act. In 2005, the
Federal Reserve Bank of New York began leading an initiative with industry participants to
strengthen clearing and settling of credit default swaps and other OTC derivatives.60 In addition,
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has worked with the private sector to enhance the
oversight of tri-party repurchase agreements (repos).61 A repo transaction is an agreement
54 Ibid., p. 18.
55 2008 Blueprint; 2009 New Foundation.
56 See Prudential Regulators in the next section of this report.
57 Statement of Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, in U.S. Congress,
House Committee on Financial Services, Systemic Risk and the Financial Markets, 110th Cong., 2nd sess., July 10,
2008, H.Hrg., p. 65 (Washington: GPO, 2008).
58 Ibid.
59 Ibid.
60 Federal Reserve Bank of New York, “Statement Regarding Meeting on Credit Derivatives,” press release, New
York, New York, September 15, 2005, http://www.newyorkfed.org/newsevents/news_archive/markets/2005/
an050915.html. For information on developments from this initiative, see Federal Reserve Bank of New York, OTC
Derivatives Market Infrastructure, New York, New York, http://www.newyorkfed.org/newsevents/otc_derivative.html.
61 The Payments Risk Committee is a private sector group representing various U.S. banks. The Payments Risk
Committee is sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. See Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Payments
Risk Committee, New York, New York, http://www.newyorkfed.org/prc/. In May 2010, the Federal Reserve Bank of
New York released a white paper on Tri-Party Repurchase Agreement (Repo) Reform. Federal Reserve Bank of New
(continued...)
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between two parties on the sale and subsequent repurchase of securities at an agreed price.62 In
economic terms, a repo transaction is equivalent to a loan backed by collateral consisting of the
securities.
Prudential Regulators
Prior to the Dodd-Frank Act, the Federal Reserve had prudential oversight responsibilities for key
private-sector infrastructure systems, including CHIPS, CLS, DTCC (and its three primary
subsidiaries, DTC, NSCC, and FICC), ICE Trust, and SWIFT.63 The Federal Reserve had
authority to oversee certain firms or their PCS activities under its statutory authority to conduct
monetary policy and banking supervision, to act as the lender of last resort, and to supervise the
Federal Reserve Banks’ provision of payment and settlement services.64 Other federal and state
regulatory agencies also exercised prudential oversight of PCS systems and activities within their
supervisory jurisdiction. For example, DTC was supervised by the New York State Banking
Department based on its charter as a limited-purpose trust company under New York law. In
addition, DTC was regulated by the Federal Reserve as a Fed member institution and by the SEC
as a registered clearing agency.
The prudential regulators include the CFTC for derivatives clearing organizations, the SEC for
clearing agencies, and the federal bank regulatory agencies for depository institutions as follows:
the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for national banks and federal savings and loan
associations;65 the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for state nonmember banks and state
savings associations; and the Federal Reserve for state member banks and Edge Act Corporations,
which are bank subsidiaries that conduct international banking and financial operations under a
special charter.
The Federal Reserve also has supervisory authority (under the Federal Reserve Act) with respect
to the Federal Reserve Banks’ operation of key payment and settlement systems, including the
Fedwire Funds Service and the Fedwire Securities Service. The Federal Reserve Board sets
policy and is responsible for general supervision and oversight of the Federal Reserve Banks,
including the provision of payment services.66 Under such authority, the Federal Reserve
conducts regular reviews of these systems and periodic assessments of the Fedwire Services
against the relevant international standards.
(...continued)
York, Tri-Party Repo Infrastructure Reform, White Paper, New York, New York, May 17, 2010,
http://www.newyorkfed.org/banking/nyfrb_triparty_whitepaper.pdf.
62 Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, Strengthening Repo Clearing
and Settlement Arrangements, CPSS Publications No. 91, Basel, Switzerland, September 2010, p. 5,
http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss91.pdf. Hereafter cited as BIS, Strengthening Repo.
63 See Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Oversight of Key Financial Market Infrastructures, Private-
Sector Systems, Washington, DC, http://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/over_pssystems.htm.
64 BIS, Central Bank Oversight, p. 13.
65 Title III of the Dodd-Frank Act provides for the transfer of powers to supervise federal savings associations to the
OCC and state savings associations to the FDIC from the Office of Thrift Supervision.
66 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Oversight of Key Financial Market Infrastructures, Reserve
Bank Systems, Washington, DC, http://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/over_rbsystems.htm.
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Supervisory Policies
The Federal Reserve Policy on Payment System Risk (PSR Policy) addresses the risks that
payment and settlement activity present to the financial system and the Federal Reserve Banks.67
The PSR Policy sets out the Board’s views, principles and minimum standards applicable to risk
management for private-sector and Federal Reserve Bank payment and settlement systems.68 In
addition, the Federal Reserve’s Regulation F requires insured depository institutions to establish
policies and procedures to avoid excessive exposures to any other depository institutions,
including those created through the clearing and settlement of payments.69
Bank supervision guidelines include the 2003 Interagency Paper on Sound Practices to
Strengthen the Resilience of the U.S. Financial System adopted by the Federal Reserve, SEC and
OCC to improve the resilience of the private-sector clearing and settlement infrastructure
following the events of September 11, 2001.70 The goal of the Interagency Paper was to ensure
the smooth operation of the financial system in the event of a wide-scale disruption. The sound
practices for organizations that are systemically important for U.S. financial markets include
consideration of the back-up capacity for operations sites and data centers in the wholesale
markets of federal funds, foreign exchange, commercial paper, corporate equities and bonds, and
government, agency, and mortgage-backed securities.
A 2008 interagency agreement among the Federal Reserve, the CFTC, and the SEC reflects the
agencies’ intent to cooperate and share information in carrying out their respective regulatory and
supervisory responsibilities with regard to central counterparties for credit default swaps.71
The CFTC has also entered into an international interagency agreement with the United Kingdom
Financial Services Authority (FSA) regarding derivatives clearing organizations and clearing
houses based in the UK. In 2009, the CFTC and FSA signed a memorandum of understanding
(MOU) that establishes a framework expressing their willingness to cooperate with each other in
the interest of fulfilling their statutory functions.72 Under the MOU, the agencies intend to
consult, cooperate, and exchange information with respect to the clearing organizations. The
MOU also addresses conducting on-site visits of respective clearing organizations.
67 The current PSR Policy, as amended effective June 16, 2010, is effective through March 23, 2011 and is accessible at
http://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/psr_policy.htm. The PSR Policy that will become effective on March
24, 2011 is accessible at http://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/2011_psr_policy.htm.
68 The PSR Policy also governs the provision of intraday or “daylight” credit provided by Federal Reserve Banks,
including policies regarding overdrafts in accounts at Federal Reserve Banks, net debit caps, and daylight overdraft
fees.
69 12 C.F.R. Part 206.
70 Dated April 7, 2003. Issued with Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal Reserve Supervisory
Letter SR 03-9, Washington, DC, May 28, 2003, http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/srletters/2003/sr0309.htm.
71 U.S. Department of the Treasury, “Memorandum of Understanding Between the Board, the CFTC, and the SEC
Regarding Central Counterparties for Credit Default Swaps,” press release, Washington, DC, November 14, 2008,
http://www.ustreas.gov/press/releases/hp1272.htm.
72 U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Memorandum of Understanding Concerning Cooperation and the
Exchange of Information Related to the Supervision of Cross-Border Clearing Organizations, Washington, DC,
September 14, 2009, http://www.cftc.gov/ucm/groups/public/@internationalaffairs/documents/file/ukfsa09.pdf.
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International Regulatory Standards
International banking regulators have also taken actions to identify risks related to PCS systems
and to strengthen the financial infrastructure. The Committee for Payments and Settlement
Systems (CPSS) was set up in 1990 by the central banks of the Group of 1073 countries. In 2009,
the CPSS enlarged its membership to include many other important central banks. The CPSS
meets three times annually and promotes sound and efficient payment and settlement systems.
The CPSS acts as an international standard-setting body for payment and securities settlement
systems and as a forum for central banks to monitor and analyze developments in domestic PCS
systems and cross-border and multicurrency settlement systems.74
The standards consist of the Core Principles for Systemically Important Payment Systems
(January 2001)75 and two sets of recommendations published together with IOSCO (International
Organization of Securities Commissions),76 the Recommendations for Securities Settlement
Systems (November 2001)77 and the Recommendations for Central Counterparties (May 2004).78
In February 2010, the CPSS and IOSCO launched a comprehensive review of the three sets of
standards for financial market infrastructures with a view to strengthening them where
appropriate.79
The CPSS also publishes policy reports analyzing issues related to large-value payment systems,
retail payment instruments and systems, settlement mechanisms for foreign exchange
transactions, and clearing and settlement of securities and derivatives transactions.80
A CPSS report from May 2005 expressed the view that a core responsibility of central banks is
the oversight function with respect to payment and settlement systems.81 The report indicates that
central banks have traditionally influenced payment and settlement systems primarily by acting as
banks providing a variety of such services to other banks. Further, central bank oversight of such
systems has developed recently and rapidly into a more formal and systematic function. Various
73 The Group of 10 or G10 includes the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, Japan, Sweden,
Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Belgium (11 countries).
74 Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications, Basel,
Switzerland, http://www.bis.org/cpss/index.htm. The current chairman of the CPSS is William C. Dudley, President of
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Timothy Geithner, then-President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York, chaired the CPSS from 2005 to 2009. See Bank for International Settlements, CPSS
History, Organisation, Cooperation, Basel, Switzerland, http://www.bis.org/cpss/cpssinfo01.htm.
75 Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications No. 43,
Basel, Switzerland, http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss43.pdf.
76 IOSCO is a policy forum for securities regulators whose membership regulates more than 95% of the world’s
securities markets in over 100 jurisdictions.
77 Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications No. 46,
Basel, Switzerland, http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss46.pdf.
78 Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications No. 64,
Basel, Switzerland, http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss64.pdf.
79 BIS, Standards Review Press Release. The CPSS expects to issue draft revised standards by early 2011. The
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are also participating in the CPSS-IOSCO standards review, which is
part of the Financial Stability Board’s work to reduce the risks that arise from interconnectedness in the financial
system.
80 See Bank for International Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications,
http://www.bis.org/cpss/index.htm.
81 BIS, Central Bank Oversight, p. iii.
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central banks monitor existing and planned systems, assessing them against the objectives of
safety and efficiency and, where necessary, inducing change to the systems.
In September 2010, the CPSS published a report entitled Strengthening Repo Clearing and
Settlement Arrangements after the repo markets proved to be a less reliable source of funding
liquidity than expected in some countries during the recent financial crisis.82 The report examines
the extent to which the market infrastructures (i.e., the practices, procedures and systems used for
clearing and settling repos and liquidating a defaulting cash borrower’s collateral) added to
uncertainty in repo markets, and presents options to strengthen the repo clearing and settlement
infrastructure.
Title VIII of the Dodd-Frank Act
Title VIII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, P.L. 111-203
establishes a regulatory framework for systemically important utilities and systemically important
PCS activities conducted by financial institutions. It provides explicit statutory oversight
authority to the Federal Reserve (Fed) in coordination with an entity’s chartering and supervisory
authority.
The Dodd-Frank Act also affects PCS systems and activities through Title VII, the Wall Street
Transparency and Accountability Act of 2010, which establishes a comprehensive regulatory
framework in regard to the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives market and swap transactions.83
Title VII establishes requirements for the clearing of certain bilateral swap transactions through
derivatives clearinghouses. Title VII also strengthens regulatory oversight of designated clearing
entities (registered derivatives clearing organizations and clearing agencies) by the CFTC and the
SEC, which are subject to the regulatory framework established in Title VIII.
The Senate, but not the House of Representatives, passed a version of the financial reform bill
containing a title similar to Title VIII.84 The House Financial Services Committee considered but
struck by amendment a similar title prior to the House of Representatives’ floor consideration of
the financial reform bill, H.R. 4173. Both the version of Title VIII in the Senate’s bill and the
version offered in the Conference Committee were modeled on proposed legislation released by
the Obama Administration in 2009.85 During the Conference Committee, participants agreed to
changes that enhanced the authority of the CFTC and SEC with respect to their supervised
entities. The changes to the relevant title gave the CFTC and the SEC rule-writing authority for
risk management standards and excluded some of their supervised entities from definitions and
Federal Reserve oversight.
82 BIS, Strengthening Repo.
83 See CRS Report R41398, The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act: Title VII, Derivatives,
by Mark Jickling and Kathleen Ann Ruane.
84 S. 3217 contained the language of the Senate version of the financial reform bill. The Senate passed H.R. 4173, with
an amendment in the nature of a substitute, replacing the House language with the text of S. 3217.
85 U.S. Department of the Treasury, Title VIII, Washington, DC, http://www.financialstability.gov/docs/
regulatoryreform/title-VIII_payments_072209.pdf. For information on all of the proposed titles, see U.S. Department
of the Treasury, http://www.financialstability.gov/roadtostability/timeline.html.
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Purpose
Section 802 sets forth the purpose of Title VIII, which is “to mitigate systemic risk in the
financial system and promote financial stability” by providing the Federal Reserve with
additional powers. Section 802 authorizes the Fed to promote uniform standards for risk
management and conduct and provide the Fed with an enhanced supervisory role for systemically
important utilities and PCS activities by financial institutions. Another statutory purpose is
strengthening the liquidity of systemically important financial market utilities.
Definitions and Exclusions
Section 803 defines the term payment, clearing, or settlement activity to mean an activity
carried out by one or more financial institutions to facilitate the completion of financial
transactions. The term financial transaction includes, among other things, funds transfers,
securities and futures contracts, repurchase agreements, foreign exchange contracts, financial
derivatives contracts, and swaps. A PCS activity does not include any offer or sale of a security or
any pre-trade or execution activity such as a quotation or order entry.
Title VIII’s regulatory framework distinguishes between financial market utilities and payment,
clearing, or settlement activities of financial institutions. It is possible that the regulatory
differences simply recognize the existing oversight authority of the federal banking agencies.
Another rationale may be an intent to avoid a loophole for systemically important PCS activities
conducted by financial institutions that are not financial market utilities as defined in Title VIII. A
financial market utility (FMU) means any person that manages or operates a multilateral system
for the purpose of transferring, clearing, or settling payments, securities, or other financial
transactions among financial institutions or between financial institutions and the person.
Section 803 excludes from the FMU definition specified registered trading entities (exchanges)
and data repositories registered and subject to CFTC oversight, including designated contract
markets and swap data repositories, or registered and subject to SEC oversight, including national
securities exchanges and swap execution facilities. Those exclusions are limited to the activities
that require the entities to be registered.
Other exclusions from the FMU definition apply to various parties that act as intermediaries,
including any broker, dealer, transfer agent, investment company, futures commission merchant,
introducing broker, commodity trading advisor, or commodity pool operator. Such exclusions are
limited to functions performed as part of the institution’s named business. Also excluded are
activities conducted by such institutions on behalf of a FMU or an FMU participant so long as the
activities are not part of the FMU’s critical risk management or processing functions.
A financial institution (FI) means any institution on a list of specified entities as defined in
various other statutes, including a depository institution, a branch or agency of a foreign bank, a
broker or dealer, a futures commission merchant, and any company engaged in activities that are
financial in nature or incidental to a financial activity.
Section 803 excludes from the FI definition designated clearing entities, which are the
systemically important DCOs and CAs subject to oversight by the CFTC and the SEC,
respectively. The exclusion applies to the activities that require the entity to be registered. Thus,
Title VIII regulation could apply to those entities only as FMUs rather than FIs.
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Section 803 also excludes from the FI definition those registered trading entities (exchanges) and
data repositories subject to CFTC or SEC oversight that are excluded from the definition of an
FMU, such as designated contract markets, swap data repositories, and swap execution facilities,
and additionally other entities, including securities information processors. The exclusion applies
to the activities that require the entity to be registered.
A designated activity or designated financial market utility means a PCS activity or utility that
the Financial Stability Oversight Council has designated as systemically important under section
804 of the Dodd-Frank Act discussed in this section below. A designated clearing entity means a
designated financial market utility that is either a registered derivatives clearing organization or
registered clearing agency.
The terms systemically important and systemic importance apply to a situation where the
failure of or a disruption to the functioning of a financial market utility or the conduct of a PCS
activity could create or increase the risk of significant liquidity or credit problems spreading
among financial institutions or markets and thereby threaten the stability of the financial system
of the United States.
In general, a supervisory agency means the federal agency that has primary jurisdiction over a
designated financial market utility under federal banking, securities, or commodity futures laws
and means the SEC with respect to a registered clearing agency, the CFTC with respect to a
registered derivatives clearing organization, the appropriate federal banking agency with respect
to an institution described in section 3(q) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, and the Federal
Reserve Board with respect to any other type of designated financial market utility.
Designation of Systemic Importance by the Financial Stability
Oversight Council
Congress provides a role to the newly created Financial Stability Oversight Council (Council) in
the enhanced regulatory oversight framework in Title VIII. The members of the Council include
the Secretary of the Treasury as Chairperson of the Council, the Chair of the Federal Reserve
Board, and the heads of certain other agencies. The agencies with a role in Title VIII (the CFTC,
SEC, and the federal banking agencies) are members of the Council.
Section 804 authorizes the Council to designate by at least a 2/3 vote, including the Chairperson
(Secretary of the Treasury), those financial market utilities or PCS activities that the Council
determines are, or are likely to become, systemically important. Prior to such determination, the
Council shall consult with the relevant Supervisory Agency and the Federal Reserve Board.86 The
Council may similarly rescind a designation of systemic importance.
The Council has broad authority to determine systemic importance. In addition to four listed
factors, Congress provides that the Council shall consider any other factor that the Council deems
appropriate. The Council must consider the following statutory factors:
86 By referring to the defined term “Supervisory Agency,” this provision apparently does not require the Council to
consult with a Federal banking regulator with respect to a financial institution that conducts a PCS activity but that is
not a utility regardless of whether the PCS activity is determined to be systemically important.
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• first, the aggregate monetary value of transactions processed by the utility or
carried out through the PCS activity;
• second, the aggregate exposure of the utility or financial institution to its
counterparties;
• third, the relationship, interdependencies, or other interactions of the utility or
PCS activity with other financial market utilities or PCS activities; and,
• fourth, the effect that the failure of or a disruption to the utility or PCS activity
would have on critical markets, financial institutions, or the broader financial
system.
The Council must give advance notice of the proposed determination and opportunity for a
written or oral hearing before the Council to the utility or financial institution. The Council may
waive or modify those procedural safeguards, however, upon 2/3 vote, including the Chairperson,
if necessary to prevent or mitigate an immediate threat to the financial system posed by the utility
or PCS activity. The Council’s final determination must be made within 60 days of any hearing or
30 days after the expiration of the opportunity to request a hearing, and the Council may extend
the time periods affecting the consultation, notice, and hearing process.
In connection with assessing systemic importance, the Council may require any utility or
financial institution to submit information as the Council may require if the Council has
reasonable cause to believe that the utility or PCS activity meets the standards for systemic
importance.87
Risk Management Standards
Except with respect to designated clearing entities, section 805 of Title VIII authorizes the Fed to
prescribe risk management standards, in consultation with the Council and Supervisory Agencies,
governing the operations related to PCS activities of systemically important financial market
utilities and the conduct of systemically important PCS activities by financial institutions. The
Fed may prescribe such standards by rule or order and must take into consideration relevant
international standards and existing prudential requirements.
The CFTC and the SEC may each prescribe regulations, in consultation with the Council and the
Fed, containing risk management standards of similar scope for systemically important DCOs and
CAs, respectively, and supervised financial institutions (for example, a futures commission
merchant supervised by the CFTC) that engage in systemically important PCS activities. Those
regulations, like the Fed’s standards, must take into consideration relevant international standards
and existing prudential requirements.
If the Fed determines that CFTC or SEC rules are insufficient to prevent or mitigate certain risks
to the financial markets or to the financial stability of the United States, the Fed may impose risk
management standards on an SEC- or CFTC-regulated entity. If the CFTC or the SEC objects
within 60 days of the Fed’s determination, then the Council would decide with a 2/3 vote which
agency’s risk management standards would apply.
87 Because Title VIII does not set forth standards for systemic importance, this text apparently refers to statutory
considerations rather than standards.
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Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
The standards of the Fed, the CFTC, and the SEC may address areas such as risk management
policies and procedures, margin and collateral requirements, participant or counterparty default
policies and procedures, the ability to complete timely clearing and settlement of financial
transactions, and capital and financial resource requirements for designated financial market
utilities.88 The agencies’ standards must, where appropriate, establish a threshold of the amount
(level or significance) of an institution’s activity that will cause the standards to apply to the
institution.
The Fed and the Council may not impose standards with respect to certain specified areas under
CFTC or SEC authority, including the approval of clearing requirements, transaction reporting, or
trade execution.89 Further, pursuant to section 811, Title VIII in general does not divest any
federal or state agency of any authority derived from any other applicable law. However, any
standards prescribed by the Federal Reserve Board under section 805 shall supersede any less
stringent requirements established under other authority.
Operations of Designated Financial Market Utilities
Section 806 authorizes the Federal Reserve to provide to systemically important financial market
utilities the Federal Reserve Bank services that are available to depository institutions. There are
four such services. First, designated utilities may have certain accounts and deposit accounts at
Federal Reserve Banks provided to depository institutions. Second, Federal Reserve Banks may
pay earnings on balances maintained by a designated utility to the same extent paid to depository
institutions. Third, the Fed may exempt a designated utility from reserve requirements or modify
any applicable reserve requirement. Lastly, the Fed may authorize a Federal Reserve Bank to
provide discount and borrowing privileges to a designated utility, but only in unusual or exigent
circumstances and upon majority vote of the Fed after consultation with the Secretary of the
Treasury. The utility would have to show that it is unable to secure adequate credit
accommodations from other banking institutions.
Title VIII also establishes procedures that a systemically important financial market utility must
follow when proposing changes to its rules, procedures, or operations. The designated utility must
provide its Supervisory Agency with 60 days’ advance notice of a proposed change that could
materially affect the nature or level of risks presented by the utility. If the agency objects within
60 days, the utility may not implement the change. However, a designated utility may implement
changes on an emergency basis in order for the utility to provide its services in a safe and sound
manner.
Examination and Enforcement
In addition to standard-setting authority, Congress gives the Fed a role in examinations conducted
by prudential regulators and enforcement for compliance with Title VIII. The Fed may, at its
discretion, participate in an examination of a systemically important utility and may exercise
back-up examination authority of a financial institution in certain circumstances. Title VIII also
88 Congress did not authorize regulators under Title VIII to modify existing prudential capital and financial resource
requirements that apply to financial institutions conducting systemically important PCS activities.
89 The Fed’s enforcement authority under Section 807(e) and (f), however, is not subject to the same limitations.
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Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
enables the Fed to take enforcement actions directly when necessary and with the Council’s
approval.
Section 807 requires a Supervisory Agency to conduct examinations at least annually of a
systemically important financial market utility to assess compliance with Title VIII.90 The
Supervisory Agency must consult with the Fed at least annually regarding the scope of such
examinations. The Fed in its discretion may participate in such examinations led by the
Supervisory Agency. After consulting with the Council and Supervisory Agency, the Fed may at
any time recommend that the agency take enforcement action to prevent risks to the financial
markets or the financial stability of the United States. In the event of imminent risk of substantial
harm to financial institutions, critical markets, or the U.S. financial system, the Fed with the
affirmative vote of the Council may take enforcement action against the designated utility.
Section 808 authorizes the appropriate financial regulator of a financial institution to examine
such institution with respect to a systemically important PCS activity for compliance with Title
VIII. The Fed may consult with, and provide technical assistance to, the appropriate financial
regulator, and the regulator may ask the Fed to conduct or participate in such examination or
enforce Title VIII against the financial institution. Title VIII also gives the Fed back-up
examination and enforcement authority, which the Fed may exercise with the Council’s approval
under certain conditions, including having reasonable cause to believe that a financial institution
is not in compliance with Title VIII.
Title VIII extends certain enforcement provisions of section 8 of the Federal Deposit Insurance
Act91 to a systemically important financial market utility to the same extent as if the utility were
an insured depository institution and to a financial institution subject to standards for a
systemically important PCS activity.
Regulatory Coordination
As described in the purposes of Title VIII in Section 802, Congress is trying to mitigate systemic
risk in the financial system and promote financial stability by authorizing the Board to promote
uniform risk management standards for relevant institutions and providing the Board an enhanced
role in the supervision of such standards. Title VIII, however, in general maintains certain
regulatory and supervisory authority of the CFTC and SEC with respect to designated clearing
entities. Further, Title VIII establishes various limitations requiring the Fed to consult with or act
in coordination with the primary supervisor of a utility or financial institution and to obtain
approval of the Council to exercise certain authority. The Council similarly must consult with or
act in coordination with other agencies in certain circumstances.
Title VIII does not remove prudential oversight by federal and state regulatory and supervisory
agencies of their supervised institutions. In general, the Federal Reserve must exercise its new
authority and responsibilities in coordination with prudential regulators. In some circumstances,
however, the Federal Reserve may take actions, or seek approval of the Financial Stability
Oversight Council to take actions, without the agreement of the primary supervisory agency.
90 A Supervisory Agency also may examine services integral to the operation of the utility by a third-party service
provider.
91 12 U.S.C. Section 1818(i).
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Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
The following provisions illustrate examples of required regulatory coordination under Title VIII:
• the Council must consult with the Fed and Supervisory Agencies in making
systemic importance determinations under Section 804;
• the Fed or the Council must coordinate with a utility’s Supervisory Agency or a
financial institution’s supervisor to request material information from or impose
reporting or recordkeeping requirements on the entity under Section 809;
• the Fed, Council, Supervisory Agency, and appropriate financial regulator are
authorized to promptly notify each other of material concerns about a designated
utility or financial institution engaged in designated activities and share
appropriate reports, information, or data relating to such concerns under Section
809(e); and
• coordination of examination and enforcement authority under Sections 807 and
808 is required, except to the extent that the Fed may exercise back-up or
independent authority in limited circumstances.
Under Section 811, Title VIII does not divest agencies of existing authority derived from other
applicable law except that standards prescribed by the Fed supersede any less stringent
requirements established under other authority to the extent of a conflict.
The Conference Committee added certain provisions that limit the role of the Federal Reserve
with respect to entities supervised by the CFTC and SEC. For example, Section 805 authorizes
the CFTC and SEC to prescribe risk management standards for designated clearing entities
(registered derivatives clearing organizations and registered clearing agencies), which the Fed can
potentially override with the approval of the Council.
Title VIII also requires the CFTC and SEC to exercise certain authority in coordination with the
Fed. Section 812 requires the CFTC and SEC to consult with the Fed prior to exercising
authorities, including rulemaking authorities, under various provisions of law as amended by Title
VIII. Section 813 requires the CFTC and the SEC to coordinate with the Fed to jointly develop
risk management supervision programs for designated clearing entities.
Title VIII Implementation
Financial Stability Oversight Council
On November 23, 2010, the Council released an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR)
regarding the Council’s authority to designate financial market utilities as systemically
important.92 The ANPR raises various questions for commenters. The Council is seeking
information that it may use to develop the specific criteria and analytical framework for systemic
92 U.S. Department of the Treasury, Financial Stability Oversight Council, Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
Regarding Authority to Designate Financial Market Utilities and Systemically Important, Washington, DC, November
23, 2010, http://www.treasury.gov/initiatives/Documents/VIII%20-
%20ANPR%20on%20FMU%20Designations%20111910.pdf.
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Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
importance designations under Title VIII. The Council will consider separately the designation
criteria and analytical framework for PCS activities carried out by financial institutions.
Federal Reserve
The statutory changes made by Title VIII are consistent with the view of international banking
authorities that the oversight of payment and settlement systems is a core responsibility of central
banks. Section 805 of the Dodd-Frank Act provides that, except for certain entities supervised by
the CFTC and SEC, the Federal Reserve by rule or order shall prescribe risk management
standards governing operations of systemically important utilities and the conduct of systemically
important activities by financial institutions. As of November 30, 2010, the Federal Reserve had
not issued any proposed rulemakings related to its Title VIII authority.
CFTC and SEC
Title VIII provides the CFTC and the SEC, respectively, with additional authority to supervise
and regulate those systemically important utilities that are derivatives clearing organizations
(DCOs) and clearing agencies (CAs), which together are called designated clearing entities.
Section 805 of the Dodd-Frank Act authorizes the CFTC and SEC to prescribe regulations
containing risk management standards governing the operations of designated clearing entities or
the conduct of designated activities by financial institutions that each agency supervises.
Although the Fed may challenge such rules as insufficient, the CFTC and SEC may object to the
Council regarding the Fed’s determination. The Council would make the final decision upon the
affirmative 2/3 vote of its members.
On October 14, 2010, the CFTC proposed regulations to establish requirements applicable to
DCOs for the purpose of ensuring that DCOs maintain sufficient financial resources to enable
them to perform their functions under the Commodity Exchange Act and the Dodd-Frank Act.93
Comments on the proposed rule are due December 13, 2010.
As of November 30, 2010, the SEC had not issued any proposed rulemakings under its Title VIII
authority, but has issued timelines for the upcoming release of implementing regulatory
proposals.94 For example, the SEC plans to issue proposed rules regarding standards for clearing
agencies designated as systemically important in December 2010 as well as during April-July
2011.
The scope of Title VIII encompasses the infrastructure for the clearing of OTC derivatives, which
is governed by the regulatory framework established in Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act. Title VII
requires firms to clear certain OTC derivatives, including credit default swaps, through central
counterparties. Both the CFTC and the SEC must write various rules to implement Title VII,
which will apply to derivatives clearing organizations and clearing agencies supervised by those
93 75 Federal Register 63113, October 14, 2010. For information on rulemakings under Title VIII, see U.S. Commodity
Futures Trading Commission, Dodd-Frank Act, Systemically Important DCO Rules Authorized Under Title VIII,
Washington, DC, http://www.cftc.gov/LawRegulation/DoddFrankAct/OTC_10_SystemicDCO.html.
94 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Clearing and Settlement, Washington, DC, http://www.sec.gov/spotlight/
dodd-frank/clearing-settlement.shtml.
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Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
agencies.95 The clearing requirements in Title VII could increase the likelihood of a systemic
importance designation under Title VIII for financial market utilities that engage in clearing OTC
derivatives.
Impact on Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems and
Activities
Those financial market utilities and PCS activities conducted by financial institutions that are
designated as systemically important will be affected by additional supervision and requirements
to comply with newly adopted risk management and conduct standards. Further, those designated
firms could potentially be subject to increased oversight through the Federal Reserve’s enhanced
examination authority and role in enforcing compliance with applicable rules.
Certain payment system infrastructures were previously subject to Federal Reserve or other
agency oversight. Newer systems and technologies may be developed in the future to process
financial transactions via the Internet and by other means. The impact on evolving technologies
would depend upon the extent to which their activities fall within the scope of the supervisory
framework established under the Dodd-Frank Act and whether newer systems become
systemically important.
The impact of Title VIII on a particular entity is likely to vary depending upon whether a
financial market utility or financial institution is currently subject to Federal Reserve supervision,
whether a system or institution has operated previously outside the scope of bank regulatory or
other federal agency oversight, and whether the utility or institution will also be subject to
requirements and potentially increased clearing transaction volume under Title VII requirements.
The impact of Title VIII will also depend upon the actions of various regulators such as how
broadly the Financial Stability Oversight Council applies the designation of systemic importance
to financial market utilities and PCS activities of financial institutions and how stringently the
Fed, CFTC and SEC decide to set risk management rules and standards.
95 International standards applicable to clearing organizations are also undergoing revision. In May 2010, the CPSS and
IOSCO released guidance with respect to how the 2004 Recommendations for central counterparties should be applied
to the handling of OTC derivatives by central counterparties. Bank for International Settlements, Committee on
Payment and Settlement Systems, Guidance on the Application of the 2004 CPSS-IOSCO Recommendations for
Central Counterparties to OTC Derivatives CCPs – Consultative Report, CPSS Publications No. 89, Basel,
Switzerland, May 2010, http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss89.pdf. In November 2010, the CPSS released a report entitled,
Market Structure Developments in the Clearing Industry: Implications for Financial Stability. Bank for International
Settlements, Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, CPSS Publications No. 92, Basel, Switzerland,
http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss92.pdf.
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Appendix. Selected Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Systems in the United
States
Name Type/Regulator
Owners/Operators
Users/Participants Uses/Functions
Transactions
Volume/Value
Fedwire Funds
Real-time gross
Federal
Depository
Sending funds to other Purchase and sale of
In 2009, there were
Service
settlement system
Reserve/Federal
institutions, U.S.
institutions, including
federal funds
124.7 million transfers
(RGSS). Payments are
Reserve Banks
Treasury, Federal
for customers.
(depository
originated (a 5.0%
continuously settled
government agencies.
Payment orders by
institutions lend
decrease from 2008),
on an individual,
In 2008, there were
depository institutions balances at the Federal valued at $631 trillion.
order-by-order basis
5,458 participants
are processed
Reserve to other
The average value per
without netting.
(excluding the U.S.
individually and settled depository institutions transfer was $5.1
Transfer of funds is
Treasury and certain
in central bank money
overnight); purchase,
million.
final and irrevocable
other domestic and
upon receipt. The U.S. sale, and financing of
when settled.
foreign entities), a
Treasury and other
securities transactions; In 2010 (Q2), the
decrease from the
federal agencies use
disbursement or
average daily volume
6,388 participants in
this service to
repayment of loans;
of transfers (for
2007.
disburse and receive
settlement of cross-
business days) was
funds.
border U.S. dol ar
488 thousand with an
commercial
average daily value of
transactions;
$2.4 trillion.
settlement of real
estate transactions
and other high-value,
time-critical payments.
CRS-25
Name Type/Regulator
Owners/Operators
Users/Participants Uses/Functions
Transactions
Volume/Value
Fedwire Securities
Real-time transfers on
Federal
Limited to depository
Issuance, transfer, and
Transfer of securities
In 2009, there were
Service (National
individual or gross
Reserve/Federal
institutions and a few
settlement for all
– for example, to
21.1 million transfers
Book-Entry System)
basis. Transfer of
Reserve Banks. The
other entities,
marketable Treasury
settle secondary
originated (a 15.7%
securities and related
Federal Reserve Banks including the U.S.
securities, for many
market trades,
decrease from 2008),
funds, if any, is final
act as fiscal agents to
Treasury,
federal government
including open market
valued at $295.7
and irrevocable when
facilitate the issuance
government-
agency and
operations; to move
trillion. The average
made. Most securities
of book-entry
sponsored
government-
collateral used to
value per transfer was
transfers involve the
securities to
enterprises, state
sponsored enterprise
secure obligations; and $14.0 million.
simultaneous exchange participants.
treasurers, and
securities, and for
to facilitate repurchase
of payment known as
limited-purpose trust
certain international
(repo) agreement
In 2010 (Q2), the
delivery versus
companies that are
organizations’
transactions.
average daily volume
payment (DVP), which
members of the
securities. There is a
of transfers (for
ensures that the final
Federal Reserve
safekeeping function
business days) was 77
transfer of securities
System. Nonbank
(electronic storage of
thousand with an
occurs if and only if
broker-dealers
securities holding
average daily value of
the final transfer of
typically hold and
records in custody
$1.3 trillion.
payment occurs.
transfer their Fedwire
accounts) and a
Securities held in
securities through
transfer and
custody at end of 2nd
depository institution
settlement function
quarter 2010 were
participants. In 2008,
(electronic transfer of
$54.8 trillion.
there were 1,203
securities between
participants in NBES.
parties with or
without a settlement
payment).
CRS-26
Name Type/Regulator
Owners/Operators
Users/Participants Uses/Functions
Transactions
Volume/Value
National Settlement
Multilateral settlement Federal
Depository
Settlement agents
Currently, there are
In 2009, processed
Service (NSS)
service implemented
Reserve/Federal
institutions that settle
acting on behalf of
approximately 40 NSS
about 469,000
in March 1999.
Reserve Banks
for participants in
depository institution
arrangements
transfers valued at
Settlement finality
clearinghouses,
participants in a
establishes by financial
about $16.5 trillion.
occurs on day of
financial exchanges,
settlement
market utilities, check
settlement.
and other clearing and
arrangement
clearinghouse
In 2010 (Q2), the
settlement groups.
electronically submit
associations, and
average daily volume
Key private-sector
settlement files to the
automated
of entries processed
system users include
Federal Reserve
clearinghouse
was 2,050 with an
DTC and NSCC for
Banks. The files are
networks.
average daily
end-of-day cash
processed upon
settlement value of
settlement; FICC for
receipt, and entries
$59.6 billion.
funds-only settlement;
are automatically
EPN; The Options
posted to a depository
Clearing Corp; and
institution’s Federal
several large and
Reserve account.
regional check
clearinghouses.
FedACH Service
Electronic payment
Federal
Depository
The ACH system
Pre-authorized
In 2009, originated
system providing
Reserve/Federal
institutions
exchanges batched
recurring payments
11.4 billion
automated clearing
Reserve Banks
debit and credit
such as payroll, Social
transactions with a
house (ACH) services.
payments among
Security, mortgage,
value of $19.8 trillion.
business, consumer,
and utility payments.
and government
Non-recurring
accounts.
payments such as
telephone-initiated
payments and the
conversion of checks
into ACH payments at
lockboxes and points
of sale. Also outbound
cross-border ACH
payments through
FedGlobal service.
CRS-27
Name Type/Regulator
Owners/Operators
Users/Participants Uses/Functions
Transactions
Volume/Value
Clearing House
Large-value payment
The Clearing House,
In 2008, CHIPS had 47 CHIPS payment
In 2008, processed 92
Interbank Payments
system with real-time
which is owned by the total participants.
instructions are
million transactions, a
System (CHIPS)
final settlement of
largest U.S. banks or
settled against a
5.4% increase from
payments. Payments
the U.S. branches or
positive current
2007, valued at $508.8
become final on
affiliates of major
position in its account
billion. The average
completion of
foreign banks.
at the Federal Reserve
value per transaction
settlement, which
Bank of New York
was $5.5 million.
occurs throughout the
(FRBNY) or
day.
simultaneously offset
by incoming payments
or both. At the end of
the day, remaining
payment instructions
are netted on a
multilateral basis.
CHIPS participants in
a net debit position
fund their residual net
positions through
Fedwire funds
transfers to the CHIPS
account at the
FRBNY.
Electronic Payments
ACH operator
The Clearing House,
Over 1350 financial
Payment system
Processes 48% of al
Processes over 8
Network (EPN)
which is owned by the institutions.
handling credit
commercial ACH
billion transactions
largest U.S. banks or
Approximately 53% of
transfers such as
volume in the U.S.
annual y.
the U.S. branches or
customers are credit
payroll and dividends
affiliates of major
unions, 36%
and debit transfers
foreign banks.
commercial, 9%
such as loan and bill
savings, and 2% savings payments and
and loan institutions.
insurance premiums.
CRS-28
Name Type/Regulator
Owners/Operators
Users/Participants Uses/Functions
Transactions
Volume/Value
The Depository
Central securities
The Depository Trust
Banks and broker-
Settling trades in
DTC moves securities
In 2008, processed
Trust Company
depository. DTC is a
& Clearing
dealers. In 2008, there corporate, municipal,
for net settlements of
316.6 million
member of the
Corporation (DTCC).
were 413 participants.
and mortgage-backed
the NSCC, which is
transactions, a 2.6%
Federal Reserve
DTCC is owned by its
securities.
also owned by DTCC, decrease from 2007,
System, a limited-
users, including major
and settlement for
valued at $182 trillion.
purpose trust
banks, broker-dealers,
institutional trades
The average value per
company under New
and other financial
typically involving
transaction was $575
York State banking
institutions.
money and securities
thousand.
law supervised by the
transfers between
New York State
custodian banks and
In 2009, settled
Banking Department,
broker-dealers as well
transactions worth
and a registered
as money market
more than $299
clearing agency with
instruments.
trillion and processed
the SEC.
299.5 million book-
entry deliveries. DTC
retains custody of
more than 3.5 million
securities issues in the
U.S. and more than
120 foreign countries
and territories worth
almost $34 trillion.
(As of 10/29/10
system website.)
National Securities
Regulated by the SEC
DTCC, which is
Brokers. In 2008,
Clearing, settlement,
In 2008, cleared 21.9
Clearing
owned by its users,
there were 221
and central
billion transactions, a
Corporation
including major banks,
participants.
counterparty services
61.6% increase from
(NSCC)
broker-dealers, and
for virtually all broker-
2007, valued at $315.5
other financial
to-broker trades in
billion. The average
institutions.
the U.S. involving
value per transaction
equities and corporate
was $14 thousand.
and municipal debt.
CRS-29
Name Type/Regulator
Owners/Operators
Users/Participants Uses/Functions
Transactions
Volume/Value
Fixed Income
Registered with and
DTCC, which is
GSD: broker-dealers,
GSD is a central
Securities transactions
In 2008, GSD cleared
Clearing
regulated by the SEC.
owned by its users,
banks, and other
counterparty and
processed by GSD
34.4 million
Corporation (FICC)
Operates two
including major banks,
financial institutions
provides real-time
include Treasury bills,
transactions, a 13.2%
divisions, the
broker-dealers, and
trading in the U.S.
trade matching,
bonds, notes, and
increase from 2007,
Government
other financial
government-securities
netting, and clearing
government agency
valued at $1 trillion.
Securities Division
institutions.
marketplace. In 2008,
services for trades in
securities.
The average value per
(GSD) and the
there were 97
U.S. government debt
transaction was $29.5
Mortgage-Backed
participants in the
issues, including
million.
Securities Division
GSD.
repurchase (repo)
(MBSD). Each division
agreements.
In 2008, MBSD
offers services to their
MBSD: participants
cleared 3 million
own members
include mortgage
MBSD provides real-
transactions, a 42.9%
pursuant to separate
originators,
time trade matching,
increase from 2007,
rules and procedures.
government-
netting, and clearing
valued at $111.3
sponsored
services for the
billion. The average
enterprises, broker-
mortgage-backed
value per transaction
dealers, banks, and
securities market.
was $37.1 million.
other financial
institutions. In 2008,
there were 103
participants in the
MBSD.
The Options
Operates under the
Founded in 1973, is
Approximately 130 of
Serves role as
Under SEC
For YTD 2010,
Clearing
jurisdiction of both
the world’s largest
the largest U.S.
guarantor and central
jurisdiction, clears
processed 3.5 billion
Corporation
the CFTC (registered
DCO. The
broker-dealers, U.S.
counterparty. Daily
transactions for
options contracts
DCO) and the SEC
stockholder exchanges futures commission
settlement of U.S.
options and security
(daily average of 15.6
share equal ownership merchants, and non-
dollar payments is
futures. As DCO,
million) and 22.8
of the OCC.
U.S. securities firms
effected through a
provides clearing and
million futures
representing
network of money-
settlement services for contracts (daily
professional traders
center banks.
transactions in futures
average 102 thousand)
and public customers.
and options on
(As of 11/19/10
futures.
system website)
CRS-30
Name Type/Regulator
Owners/Operators
Users/Participants Uses/Functions
Transactions
Volume/Value
ICE Trust
Limited purpose New
Operated by
14 clearing firm
Central credit facility
Offers CDS clearing
From launch in March
York trust company
Intercontinental
members. Customers
for credit default
for 89 single-name and 2009 through
(New York State
Exchange, a publicly
of ICE are commercial swaps (CDS). Began
38 index contracts.
11/15/10, cleared
Banking Department).
listed company, which
hedgers, traders,
clearing CDS
approximately 72
Member of the
operates three
brokers, risk
contracts in March
thousand single-name
Federal Reserve
regulated futures
managers, futures
2009.
CDS trades (with a
System. Operates
exchanges, trading
commission
gross notional cleared
under an exemption
platforms,
merchants, and
value of $541 billion)
from the SEC and the
clearinghouses, and
portfolio managers.
and 95 thousand index
U.S. Treasury
over-the-counter
CDS trades (with a
Department.
markets.
gross notional cleared
value of $7.7 trillion).
CLS Bank
Multi-currency cash
Financial services
Settlement members
Settles payment
Foreign exchange
Over half of the
settlement system
institutions in the
and user members.
instructions related to
world’s foreign
founded in 1997
foreign exchange
trades executed in six
exchange payment
business.
traded instruments
instructions. In April
and in 17 major
2010,
currencies. Eliminates
risk associated with
foreign exchange
settlement across time
zones.
Society for
Financial messaging
User-owned, limited
More than 9,000
Provides secure,
As of September
Worldwide
service
liability cooperative
banking organizations,
standardized financial
2010, processed 2.98
Interbank Financial
organized under
securities institutions,
messages and related
trillion messages year-
Telecommunication
Belgian law
and corporate
services to its member
to-date, averaging 15.8
(SWIFT)
headquartered in
customers in 209
financial institutions,
million messages per
Belgium with
countries. U.S.
their market
business day.
operational centers in
financial intermediaries infrastructures, and
the Netherlands and
are among the
their end-users.
the United States.
heaviest users of
SWIFT services for
correspondent
banking
communications.
Source: CPSS Publication No 88, Red Book Statistical Update, Statistics on payment and settlement systems in selected countries, December 2009, available at
http://www.bis.org/publ/cpss88.htm; U.S. Department of the Treasury, Blueprint for a Modernized Financial Regulatory Structure, March 2008; Federal Reserve website at
http://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/fedfunds_data.htm, and http://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/fedsecs_data.htm; and websites of selected systems.
CRS-31
Dodd-Frank Act, Title VIII: Supervision of Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Activities
List of Acronyms of Selected Terms
ACH
Automated clearing house
ANPR
Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
BIS
Bank for International Settlements
CA
Clearing agency
CCP
Central counterparty
CDS
Credit default swap
CFTC
U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Council
Financial Stability Oversight Council
CPSS
Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems
DCO
Derivatives clearing organization
Dodd-Frank Act
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
EFT
Electronic funds transfer
FFIEC
Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council
Fed
Federal Reserve System
FI
Financial institution
FMU
Financial market utility
FSA
United Kingdom Financial Services Authority
IOSCO
International Organization of Securities Commissions
MOU
Memorandum of Understanding
OTC
Over-the-counter
PCS
Payment, clearing, and settlement
PSR Policy
Federal Reserve Policy on Payment System Risk
Repo
Repurchase agreement
RTGS
Real-time gross settlement
SEC
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Title VII
Wall Street Transparency and Accountability Act of 2010
Title VIII
Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Supervision Act of 2010
Author Contact Information
Donna Nordenberg
Marc Labonte
Fellow
Specialist in Macroeconomic Policy
dnordenberg@crs.loc.gov, 7-4505
mlabonte@crs.loc.gov, 7-0640
Congressional Research Service
32