Derivatives Clearing and Risk Management

Associated with various high-profile financial disasters involving rogue dealing and catastrophic investment losses, the derivatives market tends to have a less than graceful reputation. Many people, including financial practitioners, were probably first made aware of the derivatives market through the global financial crisis and the ensuing regulatory overhauls. Underlying the integrity and credibility of the derivatives market is what has traditionally been considered a plumbing-like infrastructure-the central counterparty, which emerged as an unexpected star through the crisis. Originally developed and perfected through derivatives transactions, central counterparty clearing represents a major institutional contribution by the derivatives market to the world of financial risk management. Meanwhile, the fields of derivatives clearing and risk management are riddled with jargons and acronyms. The purpose of this book is thus to communicate as much information as possible to everyone who occasionally hears about or needs to be involved with derivatives clearing in the course of their work. It is primarily aimed to bring the concepts of derivatives clearing and its related risk management techniques to a wider audience, including business professionals with a general interest in economics and finance, but would also appeal to subject specialists on financial risk management. As a thorough but concise description of derivatives clearing covering both exchange-traded and over-the-counter markets, the book would also be of interest to traders, investment managers, and finance researchers who want to be educated about derivatives products and the inner workings of their trade support infrastructures.