The term “unprecedented” was a favourite of public officials during the Covid era. It was deployed to lament everything from the shortage of face masks to toilet paper. Commentators should be wary of inflicting this term on readers who want to understand the biggest change in decades to what is arguably the world’s most important market: US Treasuries. But here is what you need to know.
In December, the US Securities and Exchanges Commission finalised a rule that requires the vast majority of cash and financing trades to be centrally cleared. So, how money currently flows will eventually be re-routed from a refit of the plumbing.
