Global and US financial services regulators are increasing their warnings on the impending end to the use of the London Interbank Offering Rate (LIBOR) as a reference rate in financial contracts and the risk to the global financial system if there is inadequate preparation by financial institutions. Most LIBOR settings are ending this year, with … Continue Reading
Norton Rose Fulbright represented Petros PACE Finance, LLC, a leading commercial property assessed clean energy (C-PACE) lender, as the lender in the first New York City C-PACE financing which closed in early June. The C-PACE loan of $89 million on an existing building in the Wall Street area will be used to make the building … Continue Reading
The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have jointly proposed overturning the Trump Administration’s “True Lender” final rule (the “True Lender Rule”), as published by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”) on October 30, 2020 and effective December 29, 2020. The Congressional Review Act (the “CRA”) gives Congress a limited period … Continue Reading
Following up on our past posts on the transition away from the use of the London Interbank Offering Rate (“LIBOR”) as a reference rate, recently, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB) issued a letter setting forth guidance for FRB examiners to assist in their assessment of the progress of FRB-supervised firms … Continue Reading
On April 6, 2021, New York Governor Mario Cuomo signed into law legislation tackling the uncertainties surrounding the LIBOR transition, particularly for legacy contracts. The new law amends the New York State General Obligations Law by adding a new Article 18-C, and is limited to contracts governed by New York law that are either silent … Continue Reading
On Friday, March 5, 2021, the US Alternative Reference Rates Committee (ARRC), the group of private sector and government agencies working on alternatives to the end of the use of LIBOR, issued a press release commending the issuances by ICE Benchmark Administration (IBA), the LIBOR administrator, and the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), confirming that … Continue Reading
The Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (“ICE”) recently released a consultation that the administrator of LIBOR, ICE Benchmark Administration Limited (“IBA”), requesting feedback on a decision to cease publication of the overnight, one-, three-, six- and twelve-month U.S. Dollar LIBOR (“LIBOR”). The previous expectation was that publication would stop at the end of 2021. It now appears … Continue Reading
As we discussed in our October blogpost “Advances in New York City PACE programs,” the New York City Department of Finance (“NYCDOF”) has published for comment proposed rules that would establish criteria and program guidelines for the New York City Commercial Property Assessment Clean Energy (“C-PACE”) Program. The proposed rules establish eligibility criteria for obtaining … Continue Reading
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (collectively, the “Banking Agencies”) issued a statement (“Statement”) on November 6, 2020, regarding the upcoming discontinuation of LIBOR as a reference rate. Referencing a recent statement on the LIBOR transition issued by … Continue Reading
When the use of LIBOR as a reference rate in financial contracts is phased out at the end of 2021, those contracts currently utilizing LIBOR may face costly litigation, renegotiation and market disruption. On October 28, 2020, New York State Senate Bill S9070 (“S9070”) was introduced and is intended to possibly pre-empt much of that … Continue Reading
Introduction On October 23, 2020, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (“ISDA”) released the ISDA IBOR Fallbacks Protocol (“Protocol”) and a Supplement to the 2006 ISDA Definitions (“Supplement”). While the Supplement amends definitions to the 2006 ISDA Definitions, it only amends definitions for new contracts. The Protocol gives participants an opportunity to amend existing contracts. … Continue Reading
The New York City Department of Finance (“NYCDOF”) has published for comment proposed rules which would establish criteria and program guidelines for the New York City Commercial Property Assessment Clean Energy (“C-PACE”) Program. The proposed rules establish eligibility criteria for obtaining C-PACE loans for the purpose of retrofitting or renovating properties for energy efficiency or … Continue Reading
In 2015, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York stunned markets when it issued an opinion in Madden v. Midland Funding, LLC that ignored the “valid-when-made” principle of usury law that had been in place for decades. That decision impugned much of the secondary consumer debt market, including credit card … Continue Reading
To promote growth of renewable energy projects, the New York State Legislature recently passed bill A.7805/S.6523 (the “C-PACE Bill”), which will allow real estate developers and commercial property owners to obtain Property Assessed Clean Energy (“PACE”) financing for new construction projects. PACE programs are thought to be beneficial for cities, promoting energy efficiency, reducing energy … Continue Reading
On August 31, 2020, in response to requests by the Alternative Reference Rates Committee (ARRC), the US Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued revised no-action letters to swap dealers and other market participants relating to the transition from use of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) as a reference rates in transactions. These letters supersede … Continue Reading
With the potential end of LIBOR quickly approaching in only 16 months, the ARRC has been publishing many helpful resources to aid in the market’s transitions from LIBOR to SOFR, including multiple quick reference resource guides listed below. As part of the ARRC’s Summer Series (a webinar series aimed at educating the public about SOFR … Continue Reading
As noted in previous LIBOR Transition posts, the availability of LIBOR as a reference rate is not guaranteed beyond the end of 2021. On July 1, 2020, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), which consists of US federal and state banking regulators and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, issued a Joint Statement highlighting the … Continue Reading
The US Structured Finance Association (the “SFA”), the securitization industry group, has filed an amicus brief in support of a challenge and objection to the Motion for Order Rejecting Certain Unexpired Vehicle Leases Effective Nunc Pro Tunc to June 11, 2020 Pursuant to Sections 105 and 365(A) of the Bankruptcy Code (the “Motion”) filed by … Continue Reading
On June 10, 2020, the European Commission’s High-Level Forum (HLF) issued its final report on the Capital Markets Union (CMU), which proposes detailed recommendations for improving and enhancing the capital markets of the European Union (EU). The report’s 17 recommendations are grouped under four larger themes: (i) creating a vibrant and competitive business environment; (ii) … Continue Reading
LIBOR is used as a component of an interest or finance charge in consumer transactions as well as the commercial transactions we have discussed in prior LIBOR Transition posts. On June 4, 2020, the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), issued a proposed rule that would amend US consumer credit regulations to address the pending … Continue Reading
On June 2, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) published a final rule clarifying the permissible interest rates on transferred loans in relation to the “valid-when-made” doctrine. According to the “valid-when-made” doctrine, a loan is valid at its inception and cannot become invalid or unenforceable based on its original terms due … Continue Reading
Following on our post discussing the ARRC’s publication of their 2020 Key Objectives, we mentioned that ARRC panned to release a set of recommended best practices. As promised, the ARRC has published guidance for Best Practices for Completing the Transition from LIBOR (“Best Practices Guidance”), along with an accompanying ARRC fact sheet, which sets forth … Continue Reading
Following on our post discussing the ARRC’s recommendations outlining a spread adjusting procedure, we mentioned that the ARRC planned to release a more detailed final recommendation of the spread adjustment methodology for cash products. On May 6, 2020, the ARRC released a supplemental consultation seeking further views on certain technical questions for the spread adjustment … Continue Reading
On April 9, 2020, the Federal Reserve released an updated term sheet for the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (“TALF”). Eligible borrowers under TALF (“Eligible Borrowers”) must now be U.S. companies that own eligible collateral and maintain an account relationship with a primary dealer. A “U.S. company” now is defined as a business that is … Continue Reading
