Justice Dept OKs ICE's Credit Derivatives Clearing Plan
March 03 2009 - 11:56AM
Dow Jones News
The antitrust division of the U.S. Department of Justice has
signed off on a portion of the IntercontinentalExchange Inc.'s
(ICE) business plan for clearing credit-default swaps, which now
leaves only the Federal Reserve and the Securities and Exchange
Commission as the final two regulators who must green-light the
plan.
Specifically, the Justice Department was looking at the pending
acquisition of the Clearing Corp., an independent clearinghouse
owned by large derivatives dealers. Under federal law, acquisitions
of a certain size must receive approval from federal antitrust
regulators.
A posting dated March 2 on the Federal Trade Commission's Web
site indicates antitrust regulators granted "early termination" of
ICE's waiting period since it filed with the DOJ several months
ago. That essentially means "they don't have any objections to the
merger of the Clearing Corporation and IntercontinentalExchange,"
said ICE spokesman Sarah Stashak.
The proposal to clear credit-default swaps now must get final
approvals from the SEC and the Federal Reserve before it can begin
offering clearing services. The SEC indicated in an interview last
week it anticipates approving the plan "in short order."
-By Sarah N. Lynch, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6634;
sarah.lynch@dowjones.com