Self-Regulatory Organizations; Fixed Income Clearing Corporation; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Make Corrections, Clarifications and Certain Other Changes to the GSD Rules, MBSD Rules, and EPN Rules
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The Fixed Income Clearing Corporation (FICC) filed a rule change with the SEC on March 17, 2026, that became immediately effective. The proposal corrects errors, improves clarity, and harmonizes language across its Government Securities Division (GSD) Rulebook, Mortgage-Backed Securities Division (MBSD) Clearing Rules, EPN Rules, and with the rules of its affiliates DTC and NSCC. Key updates include expanding the internal Credit Risk Rating Matrix scale from 1-7 to 1-18 while keeping the public Watch List scale unchanged, removing outdated references to specific legal opinions for membership, clarifying financial reporting and notice procedures, updating multiple schedules and timeframes, and revising liability and set-off provisions. These non-substantive changes aim to increase transparency and consistency without altering how members are analyzed or how core clearing processes operate.
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Key Changes
- Expanded internal CRRM scale from 1-7 to 1-18 while keeping public Watch List scale unchanged
- Removed specific references to Enforceability Opinion and Insolvency Opinion for CCIT Members, replaced with general opinion requirement language
- Harmonized financial reporting language in GSD Rule 35, MBSD Rule 26 and EPN Article V Rule 5 with DTC and NSCC rules
+ 3 more changes with Pro
Obligations
What this law requires
FICC members must comply with updated GSD Rule 1 definitions including newly added defined terms: Excess Capital Premium, VaR Floor, and VaR Floor Percentage Amount
FICC must maintain the expanded internal Credit Risk Rating Matrix (CRRM) scale of 1-18 while keeping the public Watch List scale unchanged, with proper correspondence mapping between scales (e.g., rating 6 on 1-7 scale equals ratings 12-13 on 1-18 scale)
Agent Clearing Members must provide representation that Executing Firm Customers have authorized the Agent Clearing Member to submit trade data, rather than providing copies of written authorization documents
FICC must apply financial reporting and notice procedures consistently across GSD, MBSD, and EPN divisions using harmonized language and processes
Sponsored Members must be recognized as Members for purposes of GSD Rule 22B (Corporation Default) in their capacities as Sponsored Members