The CFTC's approval of ICE Trade Vault is provisional until the agency completes final rulemakings on SDR regulations, which are anticipated later this year.

ICE Trade Vault is the first SDR to receive provisional registration from the CFTC. ICE Trade Vault will initially focus on commodity and energy markets, building on ICE's decade-plus experience operating OTC energy markets and ICE eConfirm, the industry standard for electronic trade confirmation. ICE is evaluating opportunities in the other asset classes for which it received approval.

"We are pleased with CFTC's provisional approval of the SDR following a thorough application and review process," said Bruce Tupper, President of ICE Trade Vault. "Global market participants will benefit from our functionality and compliance tools, which will help them manage new reporting requirements through a well designed, cost efficient solution."

ICE Trade Vault released its beta version this spring and expects to go live with its production version later this year so customers can begin submitting data before final reporting rules take effect. The SDR service will leverage the patented ICE eConfirm service as a trade data capture tool, streamlining reporting requirements and making it easier for more than 250 customers and brokers to satisfy mandatory swap reporting rules.

Participants in energy and commodity markets may also use ICE eConfirm to submit end-user clearing exemptions or bona fide hedges in order to comply with new reporting requirements. ICE is working with international regulators to ensure compliance with all the current and prospective regulations relating to SDR-related facilities in Europe and Asia.