LEI Registration is another compliance check-box for entities to complete prior to a hedge transaction. The LEI (Legal Entity Identifier) is a twenty-character code that acts as a global identifier for entities participating in financial derivatives transactions. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) uses this as the primary key to monitor swap exposure among derivatives contract counterparties.
As a part of our involvement in placing a hedge, Pensford will typically handle the LEI registration on behalf of the borrower and continue to monitor its status for the initial registration period of one year. As the LEI approaches expiry, someone on your team should hear from Pensford regarding the LEI’s status.
Swap/cap counterparties must renew their LEI on an annual basis for the life of the hedge. Due to this requirement, many of our clients prefer that we renew the LEI and continue to monitor its status through the life of their swap/cap. Following the initial one year term, there is an annual renewal fee to maintain the LEI status as active. For more information visit: https://calculators.pensford.com/resources/about-the-lei/.