The International Swaps and Derivatives Association has published its August 2012 DF Protocol. The Protocol is intended to provide swap market participants with an efficient means to amend their swap agreements to comply with requirements of the wide array of new Commodity Futures Trading Commission rules relating to swaps that will come into effect starting on October 12 under the authority of Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The Protocol consists of 1) a protocol agreement, 2) a questionnaire, 3) a supplement consisting of several optional schedules, and 4) an optional terms agreement to create new documentation relationships. A party adheres to the Protocol by paying a $500 fee, submitting an adherence letter and exchanging (electronically or otherwise) questionnaires, supplements and/or terms agreements with its counterparties.
The protocol is now open for adherence and the relevant documents (plus an official set of frequently asked questions) can be found here.
ISDA has partnered with Markit to create the "ISDA Amend" electronic platform for exchanging Protocol documents, which can be found here.
