Benchmark Reform - the Impact of IBOR Transition

On 27 July 2017, Andrew Bailey, the Chief Executive of the UK Financial Conduct Authority (the FCA) announced that the FCA would no longer compel or persuade banks to make submissions to LIBOR as from the end of 2021.

LIBOR was originally a survey- based benchmark, compiled by panels of banks answering the question “at what rate could you borrow funds were you to do so by asking for and then accepting interbank offers in a reasonable market size just prior to 11am?” However, in the wake of the manipulation scandal, regulators found that there were very few transactions taking place to support some of the currencies and tenors for which LIBOR was published. As such, LIBOR submissions were largely based upon expert judgement rather than transaction data.  This led to concerns that LIBOR was unrepresentative and vulnerable to potential manipulation which in turn culminated in a number of criminal actions brought in various jurisdictions around the world.

Our briefing note explains everything you need to know about the transition to risk-free rates including key regulatory issues and challenges concerning IBOR transition.