The Futures Industry Association (FIA) recently published a whitepaper the organization noted examines the role of clearing firms in futures markets as a resource.
The FIA indicated the work explores how clearing firms could aid public sector stakeholders in gaining greater insight into how the intermediaries support safe and efficient capital markets.
Futures markets possess several types of intermediaries providing customers access to the markets and a range of services related to their trading activity. Within futures markets, the clearing firm is an essential type of intermediary.
Per the FIA analysis, clearing firms offer customers a central point of global access to futures exchanges and clearinghouses; maintain a myriad of checks and controls aimed at protecting both markets and customers; are responsible for collecting margin from clients and guaranteeing clients’ obligations to the markets; and contribute significant financial resources to the default funds maintained by clearinghouses.
The whitepaper maintains amid periods of economic stress and market turmoil, futures markets are key in the wake of their resiliency. During the 2008 financial crisis, the futures markets functioned amid financial system stress.
The analysis determined that resiliency emphasizes the importance of futures markets to the stability of the entire financial system.