MarkitSERV Teams with Swift for OTC FX Clearing

MarkitSERV and Swift have announced an agreement to deliver foreign exchange (FX) over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives trades to multiple FX central clearing counterparties (CCPs) using the MarkitSERV FX clearing gateway.

Initially covering non-deliverable forwards (NDFs), trade messages for these instruments sent over Swift are automatically transmitted to the designated CCP. During clearing, MarkitSERV then translates received data from Swift to match it, send to a clearing broker, and deliver trades to the CCP, feeding back to the client via Swift after completion.

The service is already live with LCH.Clearnet and Singapore Exchange, with certification from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

"Deutsche Bank has partnered with MarkitSERV for both its inter-dealer and client clearing requirements," says Jason Vitale, global head of FX Prime Brokerage and FX OTC Clearing at Deutsche Bank. "This much-welcomed initiative fulfils the FX industry's need to accommodate ongoing regulatory obligations while helping our clients evolve their businesses. MarkitSERV's focus on enabling clients to utilize existing messaging channels to painlessly gain access to the new FX clearing market structure will benefit all market participants."