The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) recently settled charges against Barclays Bank PLC for violations related to swap reporting.
From 2018 through 2023, Barclays failed to correctly report, or failed to timely report, millions of swap transactions in violation of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations. The reporting failures included misreporting due to the use of a duplicate swap identifier; incorrect reporting of primary economic terms; misreported time stamps; errors in connection with continuation data reporting; and late reporting.
In total, Barclays either did not correctly report, or did not timely report, more than five million swap transactions throughout 2018 to 2023.
The order requires Barclays to pay a $4 million civil monetary penalty, cease and desist from violating the applicable regulations, and comply with certain conditions and undertakings. Barclays admitted the facts in the order and acknowledged its conduct violated CFTC regulations.
“Over the last year, the CFTC has imposed over $60 million in penalties on six registered swap dealers, including Barclays here, in connection with swap data reporting violations,” CFTC Director of Enforcement Ian McGinley. “This resolution, which also includes admissions, reflects the division’s ongoing commitment to ensure the costs of violating the law outweigh the costs of compliance.”
In the settlement, the CFTC recognized Barclays’ substantial cooperation during the investigation. Barclays’ cooperation included proactively flagging swap reporting issues for the CFTC during the investigation, and voluntarily providing detailed and specific information regarding the violations described in the order.
The CFTC also acknowledges Barclays’ representations concerning its remediation, which includes voluntarily engaging third-party vendors to review and validate Barclays’ swap reporting processes.
Barclays’ cooperation and remediation are recognized in the form of a reduced civil monetary penalty.