Title 17

SECTION 255.3

255.3 Prohibition on proprietary trading.

§ 255.3 Prohibition on proprietary trading.

(a) Prohibition. Except as otherwise provided in this subpart, a banking entity may not engage in proprietary trading. Proprietary trading means engaging as principal for the trading account of the banking entity in any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments.

(b) Definition of trading account. (1) Trading account. Trading account means:

(i) Any account that is used by a banking entity to purchase or sell one or more financial instruments principally for the purpose of short-term resale, benefitting from actual or expected short-term price movements, realizing short-term arbitrage profits, or hedging one or more of the positions resulting from the purchases or sales of financial instruments described in this paragraph;

(ii) Any account that is used by a banking entity to purchase or sell one or more financial instruments that are both market risk capital rule covered positions and trading positions (or hedges of other market risk capital rule covered positions), if the banking entity, or any affiliate with which the banking entity is consolidated for regulatory reporting purposes, calculates risk-based capital ratios under the market risk capital rule; or

(iii) Any account that is used by a banking entity to purchase or sell one or more financial instruments, if the banking entity:

(A) Is licensed or registered, or is required to be licensed or registered, to engage in the business of a dealer, swap dealer, or security-based swap dealer, to the extent the instrument is purchased or sold in connection with the activities that require the banking entity to be licensed or registered as such; or

(B) Is engaged in the business of a dealer, swap dealer, or security-based swap dealer outside of the United States, to the extent the instrument is purchased or sold in connection with the activities of such business.

(2) Trading account application for certain banking entities. (i) A banking entity that is subject to paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section in determining the scope of its trading account is not subject to paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section.

(ii) A banking entity that does not calculate risk-based capital ratios under the market risk capital rule and is not a consolidated affiliate for regulatory reporting purposes of a banking entity that calculates risk based capital ratios under the market risk capital rule may elect to apply paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section in determining the scope of its trading account as if it were subject to that paragraph. A banking entity that elects under this section to apply paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section in determining the scope of its trading account as if it were subject to that paragraph is not required to apply paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section.

(3) Consistency of account election for certain banking entities. (i) Any election or change to an election under paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section must apply to the electing banking entity and all of its wholly owned subsidiaries. The primary financial regulatory agency of a banking entity that is affiliated with but is not a wholly owned subsidiary of such electing banking entity may require that the banking entity be subject to this uniform application requirement if the primary financial regulatory agency determines that it is necessary to prevent evasion of the requirements of this part after notice and opportunity for response as provided in subpart D.

(ii) A banking entity that does not elect under paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section to be subject to the trading account definition in (b)(1)(ii) may continue to apply the trading account definition in paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section for one year from the date on which it becomes, or becomes a consolidated affiliate for regulatory reporting purposes with, a banking entity that calculates risk-based capital ratios under the market risk capital rule.

(4) Rebuttable presumption for certain purchases and sales. The purchase (or sale) of a financial instrument by a banking entity shall be presumed not to be for the trading account of the banking entity under paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section if the banking entity holds the financial instrument for sixty days or longer and does not transfer substantially all of the risk of the financial instrument within sixty days of the purchase (or sale).

(i) A security, including an option on a security;

(ii) A derivative, including an option on a derivative; or

(iii) A contract of sale of a commodity for future delivery, or option on a contract of sale of a commodity for future delivery.

(2) A financial instrument does not include:

(i) A loan;

(ii) A commodity that is not:

(A) An excluded commodity (other than foreign exchange or currency);

(B) A derivative;

(D) An option on a contract of sale of a commodity for future delivery; or

(iii) Foreign exchange or currency.

(d) Proprietary trading. Proprietary trading does not include:

(1) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments by a banking entity that arises under a repurchase or reverse repurchase agreement pursuant to which the banking entity has simultaneously agreed, in writing, to both purchase and sell a stated asset, at stated prices, and on stated dates or on demand with the same counterparty;

(2) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments by a banking entity that arises under a transaction in which the banking entity lends or borrows a security temporarily to or from another party pursuant to a written securities lending agreement under which the lender retains the economic interests of an owner of such security, and has the right to terminate the transaction and to recall the loaned security on terms agreed by the parties;

(3) Any purchase or sale of a security, foreign exchange forward (as that term is defined in section 1a(24) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(24)), foreign exchange swap (as that term is defined in section 1a(25) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(25)), or cross-currency swap by a banking entity for the purpose of liquidity management in accordance with a documented liquidity management plan of the banking entity that:

(i) Specifically contemplates and authorizes the particular financial instruments to be used for liquidity management purposes, the amount, types, and risks of these financial instruments that are consistent with liquidity management, and the liquidity circumstances in which the particular financial instruments may or must be used;

(ii) Requires that any purchase or sale of financial instruments contemplated and authorized by the plan be principally for the purpose of managing the liquidity of the banking entity, and not for the purpose of short-term resale, benefitting from actual or expected short-term price movements, realizing short-term arbitrage profits, or hedging a position taken for such short-term purposes;

(iii) Requires that any financial instruments purchased or sold for liquidity management purposes be highly liquid and limited to financial instruments the market, credit, and other risks of which the banking entity does not reasonably expect to give rise to appreciable profits or losses as a result of short-term price movements;

(iv) Limits any financial instruments purchased or sold for liquidity management purposes, together with any other financial instruments purchased or sold for such purposes, to an amount that is consistent with the banking entity's near-term funding needs, including deviations from normal operations of the banking entity or any affiliate thereof, as estimated and documented pursuant to methods specified in the plan;

(v) Includes written policies and procedures, internal controls, analysis, and independent testing to ensure that the purchase and sale of financial instruments that are not permitted under § 255.6(a) or (b) of this subpart are for the purpose of liquidity management and in accordance with the liquidity management plan described in this paragraph (d)(3); and

(vi) Is consistent with the SEC's regulatory requirements regarding liquidity management;

(4) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments by a banking entity that is a derivatives clearing organization or a clearing agency in connection with clearing financial instruments;

(5) Any excluded clearing activities by a banking entity that is a member of a clearing agency, a member of a derivatives clearing organization, or a member of a designated financial market utility;

(6) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments by a banking entity, so long as:

(i) The purchase (or sale) satisfies an existing delivery obligation of the banking entity or its customers, including to prevent or close out a failure to deliver, in connection with delivery, clearing, or settlement activity; or

(ii) The purchase (or sale) satisfies an obligation of the banking entity in connection with a judicial, administrative, self-regulatory organization, or arbitration proceeding;

(7) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments by a banking entity that is acting solely as agent, broker, or custodian;

(8) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments by a banking entity through a deferred compensation, stock-bonus, profit-sharing, or pension plan of the banking entity that is established and administered in accordance with the law of the United States or a foreign sovereign, if the purchase or sale is made directly or indirectly by the banking entity as trustee for the benefit of persons who are or were employees of the banking entity;

(9) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments by a banking entity in the ordinary course of collecting a debt previously contracted in good faith, provided that the banking entity divests the financial instrument as soon as practicable, and in no event may the banking entity retain such instrument for longer than such period permitted by the SEC;

(10) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments that was made in error by a banking entity in the course of conducting a permitted or excluded activity or is a subsequent transaction to correct such an error;

(11) Contemporaneously entering into a customer-driven swap or customer-driven security-based swap and a matched swap or security-based swap if:

(i) The banking entity retains no more than minimal price risk; and

(ii) The banking entity is not a registered dealer, swap dealer, or security-based swap dealer;

(12) Any purchase or sale of one or more financial instruments that the banking entity uses to hedge mortgage servicing rights or mortgage servicing assets in accordance with a documented hedging strategy; or

(13) Any purchase or sale of a financial instrument that does not meet the definition of trading asset or trading liability under the applicable reporting form for a banking entity as of January 1, 2020.

(e) Definition of other terms related to proprietary trading. For purposes of this subpart:

(1) Anonymous means that each party to a purchase or sale is unaware of the identity of the other party(ies) to the purchase or sale.

(2) Clearing agency has the same meaning as in section 3(a)(23) of the Exchange Act (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(23)).

(3) Commodity has the same meaning as in section 1a(9) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(9)), except that a commodity does not include any security;

(4) Contract of sale of a commodity for future delivery means a contract of sale (as that term is defined in section 1a(13) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(13)) for future delivery (as that term is defined in section 1a(27) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(27))).

(5) Cross-currency swap means a swap in which one party exchanges with another party principal and interest rate payments in one currency for principal and interest rate payments in another currency, and the exchange of principal occurs on the date the swap is entered into, with a reversal of the exchange of principal at a later date that is agreed upon when the swap is entered into.

(6) Derivatives clearing organization means:

(i) A derivatives clearing organization registered under section 5b of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 7a-1);

(ii) A derivatives clearing organization that, pursuant to CFTC regulation, is exempt from the registration requirements under section 5b of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 7a-1); or

(iii) A foreign derivatives clearing organization that, pursuant to CFTC regulation, is permitted to clear for a foreign board of trade that is registered with the CFTC.

(7) Exchange, unless the context otherwise requires, means any designated contract market, swap execution facility, or foreign board of trade registered with the CFTC, or, for purposes of securities or security-based swaps, an exchange, as defined under section 3(a)(1) of the Exchange Act (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(1)), or security-based swap execution facility, as defined under section 3(a)(77) of the Exchange Act (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(77)).

(8) Excluded clearing activities means:

(i) With respect to customer transactions cleared on a derivatives clearing organization, a clearing agency, or a designated financial market utility, any purchase or sale necessary to correct trading errors made by or on behalf of a customer provided that such purchase or sale is conducted in accordance with, for transactions cleared on a derivatives clearing organization, the Commodity Exchange Act, CFTC regulations, and the rules or procedures of the derivatives clearing organization, or, for transactions cleared on a clearing agency, the rules or procedures of the clearing agency, or, for transactions cleared on a designated financial market utility that is neither a derivatives clearing organization nor a clearing agency, the rules or procedures of the designated financial market utility;

(ii) Any purchase or sale in connection with and related to the management of a default or threatened imminent default of a customer provided that such purchase or sale is conducted in accordance with, for transactions cleared on a derivatives clearing organization, the Commodity Exchange Act, CFTC regulations, and the rules or procedures of the derivatives clearing organization, or, for transactions cleared on a clearing agency, the rules or procedures of the clearing agency, or, for transactions cleared on a designated financial market utility that is neither a derivatives clearing organization nor a clearing agency, the rules or procedures of the designated financial market utility;

(iii) Any purchase or sale in connection with and related to the management of a default or threatened imminent default of a member of a clearing agency, a member of a derivatives clearing organization, or a member of a designated financial market utility;

(iv) Any purchase or sale in connection with and related to the management of the default or threatened default of a clearing agency, a derivatives clearing organization, or a designated financial market utility; and

(v) Any purchase or sale that is required by the rules or procedures of a clearing agency, a derivatives clearing organization, or a designated financial market utility to mitigate the risk to the clearing agency, derivatives clearing organization, or designated financial market utility that would result from the clearing by a member of security-based swaps that reference the member or an affiliate of the member.

(9) Designated financial market utility has the same meaning as in section 803(4) of the Dodd-Frank Act (12 U.S.C. 5462(4)).

(10) Issuer has the same meaning as in section 2(a)(4) of the Securities Act of 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77b(a)(4)).

(11) Market risk capital rule covered position and trading position means a financial instrument that meets the criteria to be a covered position and a trading position, as those terms are respectively defined, without regard to whether the financial instrument is reported as a covered position or trading position on any applicable regulatory reporting forms:

(i) In the case of a banking entity that is a bank holding company, savings and loan holding company, or insured depository institution, under the market risk capital rule that is applicable to the banking entity; and

(ii) In the case of a banking entity that is affiliated with a bank holding company or savings and loan holding company, other than a banking entity to which a market risk capital rule is applicable, under the market risk capital rule that is applicable to the affiliated bank holding company or savings and loan holding company.

(12) Market risk capital rule means the market risk capital rule that is contained in 12 CFR part 3, subpart F, with respect to a banking entity for which the OCC is the primary financial regulatory agency, 12 CFR part 217 with respect to a banking entity for which the Board is the primary financial regulatory agency, or 12 CFR part 324 with respect to a banking entity for which the FDIC is the primary financial regulatory agency.

(13) Municipal security means a security that is a direct obligation of or issued by, or an obligation guaranteed as to principal or interest by, a State or any political subdivision thereof, or any agency or instrumentality of a State or any political subdivision thereof, or any municipal corporate instrumentality of one or more States or political subdivisions thereof.

(14) Trading desk means a unit of organization of a banking entity that purchases or sells financial instruments for the trading account of the banking entity or an affiliate thereof that is:

(i)(A) Structured by the banking entity to implement a well-defined business strategy;

(B) Organized to ensure appropriate setting, monitoring, and management review of the desk's trading and hedging limits, current and potential future loss exposures, and strategies; and

(1) Engages in coordinated trading activity with a unified approach to its key elements;

(2) Operates subject to a common and calibrated set of risk metrics, risk levels, and joint trading limits;

(3) Submits compliance reports and other information as a unit for monitoring by management; and

(4) Books its trades together; or

(ii) For a banking entity that calculates risk-based capital ratios under the market risk capital rule, or a consolidated affiliate for regulatory reporting purposes of a banking entity that calculates risk-based capital ratios under the market risk capital rule, established by the banking entity or its affiliate for purposes of market risk capital calculations under the market risk capital rule.

[79 FR 5779, 5805, Jan. 31, 2014, as amended at 84 FR 62239, Nov. 14, 2019]