Commodity Futures Trading Commission 

 Office of Public Affairs 

 Three Lafayette Centre 

 1155 21st Street, NW 

 Washington, DC 20581 

 www.cftc.gov

Q & A – Swap Data Recordkeeping and Reporting 

Requirements: Pre-Enactment and Transition Swaps 

What is the goal of the proposed rulemaking? 

This notice of proposed rulemaking proposes new regulations for swap data recordkeeping and reporting for preenactment swaps (those executed before enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act) and transition swaps (those entered 

into between the date Dodd-Frank was enacted and the still-to-be-determined, future effective date of the CFTC’s 

final swap data recordkeeping and reporting rules). The goal of the proposed rule for historical swaps is to provide 

specificity and clarity, to the extent possible, concerning what records must be kept and what data must be reported 

with respect to historical swaps. The rule is also designed to ensure that data needed by regulators concerning 

historical swaps is available to regulators through swap data repositories (SDRs) once swap data reporting begins. 

What are the data recordkeeping requirements under the proposed rulemaking? 

The rule proposes limited recordkeeping requirements for counterparties to historical swaps. For swaps in 

existence on or after the date of publication of the proposed rule, counterparties would be required to keep records 

of specified, minimum primary economic terms for a swap of the asset class in question, listed in Tables in the 

Appendix to the rule. In addition, if a historical swap counterparty has a confirmation of the historical swap as of 

that date, the counterparty would be required to keep it. For historical swaps that expired prior to publication of 

the proposed rule, counterparties would need to keep the records they already have, in the form they are already 

kept. The required records must be kept throughout the remaining existence of a historical swap and for five years 

following its final termination or expiration. 

What are the data reporting requirements under the proposed rulemaking? 

For each historical swap in existence on or after the date of publication of the proposed rule, the rule calls for an 

initial data report on the effective date of the final swap data reporting rules, and for ongoing reporting of data from 

the continuation of the historical swap thereafter during the swap’s remaining existence. Determination of which 

counterparty must report would be made in the same way provided in the main proposed rule on swap data 

reporting. 

The initial data report would include the minimum primary economic terms for a historical swap of the asset class 

in question, as specified in the appropriate Table in the Appendix to the rule. If the reporting counterparty 

possessed a confirmation of the historical swap on or after the publication date of this rule, the confirmation terms 

that are recorded in the automated system of the reporting counterparty would also be included in the initial data 

report. For historical swaps already reported to an existing repository prior to the effective date of the final 

reporting rules, the proposed rule would not require duplicate reporting. 

With respect to ongoing reporting of continuation data during the remaining existence of a historical swap, this 

proposed rule parallels the CFTC’s previously published data reporting rule in following the life cycle approach for 

credit swaps and equity swaps, and the state or snapshot approach for interest rate swaps, currency swaps, and other 

commodity swaps. This unified approach to data reporting for historical swaps and new swaps is designed to 

Commodity Futures Trading Commission ♦ Office of Public Affairs ♦ 202-418-5080 
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Commodity Futures Trading Commission ♦ Office of Public Affairs ♦ 202-418-5080 

minimize recordkeeping and reporting burdens for the industry, and to coordinate reporting requirements with the 

SEC to the extent possible. 

For each historical swap which expired or was terminated prior to publication of this proposed rule, the reporting 

party would be required to report such information relating to the terms of the transaction as was in the reporting 

counterparty’s possession as of issuance of the interim final rule. This information can be reported via any method 

selected by the reporting counterparty. 

Counterparties required to report data concerning historical swaps may contract with third-party service providers 

to facilitate reporting. However, such counterparties remain responsible for reporting as required by the proposed 

rule. 

What are the required data standards for data reporting on historical swaps? 

In reporting swap data to an SDR, each reporting counterparty would be required to use the facilities, methods, or 

data standards provided or required by the SDR to which the counterparty reports the data. SDRs may permit 

reporting entities and counterparties to use various facilities, methods, or data standards, provided that its 

requirements in this regard enable it to meet the CFTC’s requirements with respect to data maintenance and 

transmission of data to the CFTC.