LCH.Clearnet appoints Susan Milligan as Head of US Public Affairs

06 June 2011

LCH.Clearnet Limited (LCH.Clearnet) has appointed Susan Milligan head of US public affairs.  Based in Washington D.C., Susan will be responsible for representing LCH.Clearnet Group with the US Congress and the federal agencies and will liaise with the US media.

Susan joins LCH.Clearnet from the Options Clearing Corporation (OCC), where she managed federal government relations and all corporate communications for the US clearinghouse.

Ian Axe, chief executive officer, LCH.Clearnet said: “Susan’s appointment underscores our commitment to the US.  The launch of our SwapClear FCM model in March has given US clients access to the world’s leading IRS clearing service and we are focussed on continuing to build our US presence.  Susan has a proven track record and extensive industry experience, and is a valuable addition to our team.”

Susan Milligan, head of US public affairs, LCH.Clearnet said: “LCH.Clearnet's market leading clearing solutions place it at the forefront of the industry.  I am delighted to be joining LCH.Clearnet and look forward to communicating the challenges and opportunities the company faces to US policymakers.”

Susan has 24 years experience in US regulatory affairs.  Susan commenced her career as an Attorney at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in 1987, rising to become Acting Counsel to Chairman Wendy Gramm and Counsel to Commissioner Sheila Bair. She left the CFTC in 1995 to join the New York Stock Exchange as Counsel, Government Relations.

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To view the press release as a pdf click here.

About LCH.Clearnet

LCH.Clearnet (then The London Produce Clearing House Limited) began clearing commodity futures in 1888.  Today it is the leading independent clearing house group, serving major international exchanges and platforms, as well as a range of OTC markets.  It clears a broad range of asset classes including: securities, exchange traded derivatives, energy, freight, interest rate swaps and euro and sterling denominated bonds and repos; and  works closely with market participants and exchanges to identify and develop clearing services for new asset classes.

A clearing house sits in the middle of a trade, assuming the counterparty risk involved when two parties (or members) trade.  When the trade is registered with a clearing house, it becomes the legal counterparty to the trade, ensuring the financial performance; if one of the parties fails, the clearing house steps in.  By assuming the counterparty risk, the clearing house underpins many important financial markets, reducing risk, facilitating trading and increasing confidence within the market.

Initial and variation margin (both collateral) is collected from clearing members; should they fail, this margin is used to fulfil their obligations.  The amount of margin is decided by the clearing house’s highly experienced risk management teams, who assess a member’s positions and market risk on a daily basis; in IRS, 6 times intraday.  Both the soundness of the risk management approach and the resilience of its systems have been proven in recent times.

LCH.Clearnet is regulated or overseen by the national securities regulator and/or central bank in each jurisdiction from which it operates.