ISDA (OTC- Traded between 2 parties NOT through an

exchange or Intermediary)
Master Agreement is a standardised document used to govern OTC derivative
transactions

– Accompanied by a customised schedule and a CSX (Defines the terms for

the provision of collateral)
– In a transaction both receives a confirmation that sets out details &
references the signed agreement.

ISDA Schedule: Parties to a swap or other bilateral derivatives transaction

typically use to ALTER terms of and add to the standard pre-printed standard
form ISDA agreement.
– Negotiated to cover requirements of specific hedging transactions and
ongoing trading relationships.
Requirements for an ISDA agreement:
– Set principles under which one of the parties can force a closeout of a
covered transaction due to a termination event
– Whether UK Laws or NY laws apply
– Terms for valuing, closing out and netting in case of termination.

ISDA has 2 versions: 1992 and 2002.

-1992: Market Quotation/ Loss method: Parties review the average of
quotations from leading swap dealers and agree on fair compensation in
case of early termination
-2002: Close out method: Parties agree on a fair compensation for the
payments and deliveries that have or could have been earned.
– Decrease in the grace period
– Set off provision
– Termination event stipulation ( natural or man made catastrophes, labour
riots and acts of terrorism).

MASTER HAS 5 core themes:

1. EVENTS: Things that happen outside the contract affecting the obligation
2. PAYMENTS & DELIVERIES
3. CLOE OUT & NETTING
4. DISPUTES
5. CONTRACT FORMATION & LEGAL RELATIONS.

THE ROLE:
• Review and analyze ISDA/ CSA and other Master/ Credit Support
documentation; determine material clauses and identify key risks in
documentation
• Develop a comprehensive understanding of the Legal and margin work-flow
and systems
• Liaise with Legal, Credit, Middle Office, Trading/ Sales/ Strategists, Corporate
Treasury, Collateral and other internal GS Teams on issues
• Review and understand all upcoming regulations to properly assess the
impact to the team and the firm
• Work closely with Engineering to identify/ resolve system issues, and
implement system enhancements to increase efficiency in current processes
• Identify potential risks in operational processes; develop and implement
controls to mitigate risk
• Analyze and improve work-flow to improve operational efficiency