Singapore legislation

Clause 60

of Securities and Futures (Amendment) Bill

Clause 60

New Part VIC

The principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 129H, the following Part:“PART VICTRADING OF DERIVATIVES CONTRACTSInterpretation of this Part129I. In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires —“specified derivatives contract” means any derivatives contract that is, or that belongs to a class of derivatives contracts that is, prescribed by regulations made under section 129N for the purposes of this definition;“specified person” means —

(a)

any bank that is licensed under the Banking Act (Cap. 19);

(b)

any merchant bank approved as a financial institution under the Monetary Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 186);

(c)

any finance company licensed under the Finance Companies Act (Cap. 108);

(d)

any insurer licensed under the Insurance Act (Cap. 142);

(e)

any holder of a capital markets services licence; or

(f)

any other person who is, or who belongs to a class of persons which is, prescribed by regulations made under section 129N.Trading of specified derivatives contracts129J.—

(1)

Every specified person who executes a specified derivatives contract must do so —

(a)

on an organised market operated by an approved exchange or a recognised market operator, or on or through any other facility prescribed by regulations made under section 129N; and

(b)

in the form and manner prescribed by regulations made under that section.(2) Any specified person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $100,000.(3) A failure to comply with subsection (1) does not of itself render the specified derivatives contract that is executed voidable or void.Power of Authority to obtain information129K.—

(1)

The Authority may require any person to furnish the Authority with such information or documents as the Authority considers necessary for determining —

(a)

whether any derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts should be prescribed for the purposes of the definition of “specified derivatives contract” in section 129I;

(b)

whether the person or any other person or class of persons should be prescribed for the purposes of paragraph (f) of the definition of “specified person” in section 129I; or

(c)

whether the purpose or effect of any contract, arrangement, transaction or class of contracts, arrangements or transactions is to avoid, directly or indirectly, any requirement that is, or that would otherwise have been, imposed under section 129J(1).(2) Subject to subsections (4) and (5), a person must comply with every requirement imposed on him under subsection (1).(3) Any person who contravenes subsection (2) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $50,000 and, in the case of a continuing offence, to a further fine not exceeding $5,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues after conviction.(4) A person who complies with a requirement imposed under subsection (1) is not to be treated as being in breach of any restriction upon the disclosure of information imposed by written law, any rule of law, any contract or otherwise.(5) Nothing in this section compels an advocate and solicitor, or a legal counsel referred to in section 128A of the Evidence Act (Cap. 97), to furnish any information on, or any document containing, any privileged communication made by or to him in that capacity.(6) Where a person claims, before furnishing the Authority with any information or documents that the person is required to furnish under subsection (1)(c), that the information or documents might tend to incriminate him, the information or documents —

(a)

are not admissible in evidence against the person in criminal proceedings other than proceedings under subsection (3); but(b)are admissible in evidence for civil proceedings under Part XII.Directions on alternative trading arrangements129L.—

(1)

Where the Authority is of the opinion that any organised market operated by any approved exchange or recognised market operator or any other facility prescribed for the purposes of section 129J(1) is not available for the execution of, or is incapable of executing, any specified derivatives contract under section 129J(1), the Authority may issue directions, whether of a general or specific nature, by notice in writing, to any specified person or to any class of such persons, requiring the specified person or class of such persons to, when executing any such specified derivatives contract, comply with the requirements specified in the notice relating to the form and manner in which the contract must be executed, and the time within which the contract must be executed.(2) A specified person mentioned in subsection (1) must comply with every direction issued to him under that subsection.(3) A specified person is treated to have complied with section 129J(1) in relation to a specified derivatives contract if, while a direction issued to him under subsection (1) remains in force, the specified person executes that specified derivatives contract in the form and manner and within the time specified by the Authority in that direction.(4) The Authority may cancel a direction issued under subsection (1) if the Authority is of the opinion that the grounds for the issue of the direction have ceased to apply.(5) Any specified person who, without reasonable excuse, contravenes a direction issued to him under subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $100,000.(6) It is not necessary to publish any direction issued under subsection (1) in the Gazette.Compliance with laws and practices of relevant trading jurisdiction129M.—

(1)

Subject to subsection (2), a specified person is treated as having complied with section 129J(1) in relation to the specified derivatives contract if the specified person is required to comply with, and has complied with, in relation to the specified derivatives contract, the requirements relating to the execution of specified derivatives contracts under the laws and practices of the relevant trading jurisdiction.(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to any specified derivatives contract or any class of specified derivatives contracts prescribed by regulations made under section 129N.(3) In this section, “relevant trading jurisdiction” means a foreign jurisdiction that is prescribed by regulations made under section 129N.Power of Authority to make regulations129N.—

(1)

Without prejudice to section 341, the Authority may make regulations for the purposes of this Part.(2) In deciding whether to prescribe any derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts for the purposes of the definition of “specified derivatives contract” in section 129I, the Authority may have regard to —

(a)

the level of systemic risk posed by that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts;

(b)

the characteristics and level of standardisation of the contractual terms and operational processes relating to that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts;

(c)

the depth and liquidity of the market for that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts;

(d)

the international regulatory approach towards that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts;

(e)

the types of persons that transact in that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts, and the purposes of transacting in that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts;

(f)

the availability of approved exchanges or recognised market operators that operate organised markets, and the availability of facilities prescribed pursuant to section 129J(1), for the trading of that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts;

(g)

whether there is any anti-competitive effect associated with that derivatives contract or class of derivatives contracts; and

(h)

any other matter that the Authority considers to be relevant.Exemption from section 129J129O.—

(1)

Despite section 337(1), the Authority may, by regulations made under section 129N, exempt any specified person or class of specified persons from section 129J, subject to such conditions or restrictions as the Authority may prescribe in those regulations.(2) The Authority may, by notice in writing, exempt any specified person from section 129J, subject to such conditions or restrictions as the Authority may specify by notice in writing.(3) It is not necessary to publish any exemption granted under subsection (2) in the Gazette.(4) Every specified person that is exempted under subsection (1) or (2) must satisfy every condition or restriction imposed on the specified person under the applicable subsection.(5) The Authority may at any time add to, vary or revoke any condition or restriction imposed under this section.(6) Any person who contravenes subsection (4) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $100,000 and, in the case of a continuing offence, to a further fine not exceeding $10,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues after conviction.”.