Synopses & Reviews
Discussing both legal aspects and the operational environment of the ISDA Master Agreement, this book will certainly prove to be much more consulted, and well appreciated as its predecessor was. The complicated made simple, this is a must-have for any one regularly confronted with the ISDA Master Agreement or its consequences.Sybrand de Vries, Regional Manager (Europe), ABN AMRO Bank NV
The thorough section by section review and summary makes this an essential companion to the original edition. Together with the new developments chapter, this is required reading for anybody new to negotiating, as well as those who want to keep right up to date with the market.
Keith Spiller, Executive Director, UBS Investment Bank
Again a great a great piece of work, this practical guidance will help the market to overcome the burden of a new agreement and to understand the concept behind it. This book definitely supports the growth of the derivatives market and helps to establish the new 2002 ISDA Master Agreement.
Wilfried F. Schütte, Senior Legal Councel, DZ-Bank AG
This book keeps the qualities of the predecessor intact. The simple glossary explanations and clear references to the differences between the 1992 and the 2002 Agreement are valuable tools for practitioners intending to enjoy the fruits of staying in ISDA Heaven."
Svend Erik Walther, Documentation Manager, Danske Bank A/S
Mastering the ISDA Master Agreement 1992 and 2002, will provide a practical, clear and useful foundation for the fledgling negotiator as well as supporting them with a good overview of the legal, credit and operational issues inherent in the ISDA Master Agreement.
About the Author
Paul Harding
has worked in several UK and foreign banks in London in credit, marketing and documentation roles. Since 1990 he has been involved with derivatives documentation, and was a well-known negotiator in the City with Barclays Capital Securities and Hill Samuel Bank, where he was head of treasury documentation.
In 1997 he founded Derivatives Documentation Ltd, a derivatives consultancy and project management company based in the City of London and providing negotiation, recruitment and in-house training services in derivatives documentation. Its clients include many of the world's leading banks.
Paul Harding brings over ten years' in-depth market experience to the subject of this book.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1. Introduction to the global derivatives market
-Size of market according to latest ISDA figures.
-Estimated amount really at risk.
-Main products
-Main currencies.
-Market users.
-How a deal is done from start to finish.
Chapter 2. Need for and evolution of the ISDA Master Agreement
-Inefficiency in documenting each trade in the market's early days.
-Documentation standardisation introduced by ISDA from 1985.
-How ISDA documentation evolved.
-Product Definitions
-Confirmations
-Master Agreement types.
Chapter 3. Section by section clear analysis of the 1992 ISDA Master Agreement
The idea is as before to have a block of ISDA Master Agreement text on one page and a clear explanation of it on the opposite page.
Written approval has been given by ISDA to reproduce the 1992 ISDA Master Agreement in this format.
Chapter 4. Section by section clear analysis of the 2002 ISDA Master Agreement
Same format.
Written approval has been given by ISDA to reproduce the 2002 ISDA Master Agreement in this format.
Chapter 5. Legal issues relating to the ISDA Master Agreements
UK issues
-Gaming laws
-Capacity and authority of transacting parties.
-Ultra vires considerations.
-the Hammersmith and Fulham case and local authorities as swaps counterparties.
-Protection from case law and the 1985 Companies Act in the UK.
-specialised entities e.g. insurance companies, pension funds, unit trusts, building societies.
-The concept of suitability.
-Enforceability of close-out netting and set-off.
-Automatic Early Termination.
-The ISDA collective legal opinions.
-Third Party Rights.
New section on US issues
Chapter 6. Credit issues relating to the ISDA Master Agreements
-Addition of Specified Entities.
-Specified Indebtedness variations.
-Downgrade from Cross Default to cross acceleration.
-Threshold Amounts.
-Credit Event Upon Merger variations.
-Additional Termination Events.
-Set Off
-Transfers.
-Political risk.
-The "vanilla ISDA".
Chapter 7. Operational issues relating to the ISDA Master Agreements
-Confirmations
-Payments
-Deliveries
-Close out
-Administrative matters.
Chapter 8. A sample 1992 ISDA Master Agreement Schedule and accompanying commentary
Chapter 9. A sample 2002 ISDA Master Agreement Schedule and accompanying commentary
In each of these chapters the idea is to have a block of Schedule text on one page and a clear explanation of it on the opposite page.
Chapter 10. Provisions for special entity types and those sought by US counterparties
As per the first edition with some updating
Chapters 8, 9 and 10 are the hub of the book because the Schedule is what negotiators actually negotiate and where they need core knowledge and awareness of possible variations and their implications.
Chapter 11. New developments
Annexes