Markit, a provider of financial information services, says it has launched its Request for Amendment (RFA) service, available through Counterparty Manager and kyc.com. RFA centralises and automates legal onboarding when adding accounts to existing master trading and custody account agreements, it says, working with three of the largest asset management firms including AB (formerly AllianceBernstein).
The service is designed to transform the way information is shared across the dealer community, reducing the cost of legal onboarding and provides transparency into a firm’s ability to be ‘ready to transact’, adds Markit. It says the RFA electronic and standardized process allow asset managers to reduce operational risk by having a golden copy of trading documentation.
Said Gerardo Talamo, Vice President and Counsel at AB: “As an existing Markit customer we have already derived efficiency in our onboarding process through the secure sharing of critical information across the dealer community. Markit’s RFA electronic service will significantly reduce the inefficiency of exchanging paper documents and emails, and will provide a complete audit trail and repository of all legal amendments.”
Initially, RFA will support ISDA Master Agreements, Credit Service Agreement Addendums (CSAs) and Cleared Derivative Execution Agreements (CDEAs). The service will be expanded to include additional trading agreements such as Repo agreements (MRAs/GMRAs), Master Securities Forward Transaction Agreements (MSFTAs) and Account Control Agreements (ACAs).
