Question

A company has derivatives transactions with Banks A, B, and C which are worth +$20 million, −$15 million, and −$25 million, respectively to the company. How much margin or collateral does the company have to provide? The transactions are cleared bilaterally and are subject to one-way collateral agreements where the company posts variation margin, but no initial margin. The transactions are cleared centrally through the same CCP and the CCP requires a total initial margin of $10 million.

Answer 1

Answer:

1. With Bilateral Clearing, where the company posts variation margin, but no initial margin:

The company has to provide collateral to Banks A, B, and C of $0 million, $15 million, and $25 million respectively.  

Therefore, the total collateral required is $40 million.  

2. With Central Clearing through the CCP, where the CCP usually requires an initial margin of $10 million:

The derivatives are netted against each other, and the company’s total variation margin is $20 million (–$20 + $15 + $25) in total.  

The total margin required (including the initial margin) is, therefore, $30 million ($20 + $10 million).

Explanation:

a) Data and Calculations:

Worth of derivative with Bank A = +$20 million

Worth of derivative with Bank B = -$15 million

Worth of derivative with Bank C = -$25 million

b) In a bilateral clearing, the company and each bank (called market participants) enter into an agreement with each other to cover all outstanding derivative transactions between the two parties.  On the other hand, in central clearing, a central clearing party (CCP) stands between the two sides of an OTC derivative transaction in much the same way that the exchange clearing house does for exchange-traded contracts.