The Derivatives Service Bureau (DSB) has opened a Request for Information (RFI) process to identify a reference data provider for provision of underlier identifiers for the Unique Product Identifier (UPI). The DSB aims to finalize the selection process by the middle of the year.
A requirement of the UPI (which will be available from the DSB from Q3 2022) is to support the use of multiple underlier identifiers and reference data elements. In order for the UPI Service to support the use of a range of underlier identifiers it is necessary for the DSB to identify a suitable provider of reference data.
Underlier identifiers are critically important, as they are one of the attributes used to define a UPI. At a given point in time, every reportable OTC derivative product should be identified by one distinct set of UPI reference data elements and their values. It is intended that UPI users will be able to submit a range of underlier identifiers, which will map to a single UPI code for any given OTC derivative product. The different identifiers representing the instrument, index, or reference rate for an OTC derivative should therefore be regarded as alternative representations of the underlier for the same UPI. Such reference data will be important in underpinning the UPI’s effectiveness.
The DSB was founded by the Association of National Numbering Agencies (ANNA) to facilitate the allocation and maintenance of International Securities Identification Numbers (ISINs), Classification of Financial Instrument codes (CFIs) and Financial Instrument Short Names (FISNs) for OTC derivatives,
Emma Kalliomaki, managing director of ANNA and the DSB, said in a statement: “The UPI is going to be critical to the international markets allowing regulators to aggregate global data reportable to trade repositories. Having a reliable reference data source for underliers is vitally important. We are interested in receiving submissions from reference data providers who are able to satisfy the criteria set out in our RFI documentation.”