15 Transition from LIBOR: Credit Sensitivity Group Workshops; see also Nathaniel Wuerffel, Transitioning Away from LIBOR:  Understanding SOFR's Strengths and Considering the Path Forward. 16 Final Rule on Margin and Capital Requirements for Covered Swap Entities. 17 Facilitating the LIBOR Transition (Regulation Z); see also the CFPB’s updated Consumer Handbook on Adjustable Rate  Mortgages and LIBOR Transition FAQs. 18 FASB Issues Guidance to Assist in Transition Away from Interbank Offered Rates to New Reference Rates; Letter to SEC  confirming treatment of interest rate reset features as embedded derivatives. See also Government Accounting Standards Board Statement No. 93, Replacement of Interbank Offered Rates and International Accounting Standards Board Staff Paper on Issues Leading up to IBOR Reform. 19 Guidance on the Transition From Interbank Offered Rates to Other Reference Rates; see also Letter from the ARRC to U.S.  Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service regarding proposed regulations and Letter from the ARRC to U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service requesting guidance regarding financial contract discount rate transition. 20 CFTC Provides Relief to Market Participants Transitioning Away from LIBOR; CFTC Provides Additional Relief to Market  Participants Transitioning from LIBOR; see also Letter from the ARRC to the CFTC regarding treatment of discount rate changes by derivatives clearing organizations. 21 FHFA, Libor Transition. 22 FHFA Announces Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Update on LIBOR Transition, February 5, 2020. 23 Fannie Mae to Accept Single-Family SOFR ARM Products Beginning August 3, 2020; SOFR-Indexed ARMS. See also their LIBOR  Transition Playbook.

Those new concerns and risks have understandably pushed many welllaid plans into the background, and the pandemic has had such far-reaching effects that all sorts of things we thought we knew would happen have become uncertain. What I want to do today is remind you all that despite everything else that’s happening, the end of LIBOR is still coming. Exactly how that happens is still uncertain, but the best response to uncertainty about tomorrow is to take decisive action today. Since my speech last year, there has been substantial progress in addressing some of the uncertainties that surrounded LIBOR transition, even as new uncertainties have arisen. Now, many lawyers love uncertainty. If everything were crystal clear, what would we spend our time arguing about? I have said before that the end of LIBOR presents a rather frightening—or awe inspiring, depending on your perspective—litigation risk. But it’s not just litigation risk. The LIBOR transition encompasses a whole panoply of risks. Yes, legal risk, but also operational risk, credit risk, regulatory risk, reputational risk, you name it—LIBOR has it all. So the possibility of a failed LIBOR transition is something that should keep all of us up at night. But let’s try and stay positive in these rather dark times—let’s talk about what progress has been made, and what you can do now to minimize the uncertainties that remain. My remarks will focus on the transition in the United States for U.S. dollar LIBOR, but I will touch on some international developments that are relevant to that transition.