The International Capital Markets Association (ICMA) has announced the launch of its Global Master Repurchase Agreement (GMRA) Clause Library and Taxonomy, offering digitised standardisations of repo transaction contracts.
The GMRA Clause Library and Taxonomy was developed by ICMA in collaboration with its members and legal change and consulting firm D2 Legal Technology (D2LT).
ICMA says the primary purpose of its service is to eliminate or reduce the need to negotiate and the time spent debating the form of contract clauses that achieve the same outcome.
The GMRA Clause Library and Taxonomy is designed to reduce legal risk by introducing industry validated clauses, improving the efficiency of negotiations and allowing for greater visibility in meeting business and regulatory requirements.
The service’s prospective benefit to market participants is a reduction in counterparty onboarding costs.
ICMA aims to enable the use of digital technology by providing common standards for product and legal specifications in the development of platforms and solutions.
The Clause Library and Taxonomy will develop over time as new clauses, variants and variables are brought into frequent use.
Leland Goss, managing director and general counsel of ICMA, says: “ICMA has devoted considerable resources to developing a standard master agreement for repo transactions. Recognising the value and importance of digitising these standards, we are pleased, in collaboration with D2LT, to announce the availability of the GMRA Clause Library and Taxonomy.”
CEO of D2LT Akber Datoo adds: “While many market participants in the repo market have reaped some of the efficiencies and risk mitigation benefits delivered by the use of systems and data for some time, their documentation and legal teams have remained constrained by manual processes that have historically hindered their ability to unlock the business value offered by such technologies.”
D2LT was previously involved in the International Securities Lending Association’s (ISLA’s) Clause Library and Taxonomy, which launched in September 2021.
