AcadiaSoft offers an ISDA SIMM™ Backtesting & Benchmarking Service that includes both back-testing of SIMM™ over a historical period and benchmarking SIMM™ against four industry-standard risk methodologies to assist in monitoring the effectiveness of SIMM™ as a margin model.

We know that complying with the latest regulations can be burdensome. It requires your firm to have access to experienced resources, investment in IT systems, a complete set of historical market data and a thorough understanding of the requirements in a timely and repeatable process. AcadiaSoft brings firms a unique and cost-effective Backtesting and Benchmarking service for Initial Margin calculations that can be put in place ahead of regulatory approval or as a substitute for costly internal processes.

IM Backtesting & Benchmarking inputs and outputs

Key Features:

  • Transparency: standard, open process enables firms to fully understand and monitor SIMM™ performance over a quarter as well as provide materials for regulatory review
  • Data security: clients upload portfolios in a secure, tested environment
  • Standardized market data: all users share common market data provided by market-leading, independent sources
  • Standard portfolios/risk factors: includes standard portfolios and risk factors for performance to be monitored through changing market conditions
  • Intelligence: the service uses differing specifications to allow for a more thorough understanding of the model’s performance, including benchmarking of SIMM™ against multiple metrics:
    • Full Revaluation Historical Simulation VaR – quantile of the empirical distribution generated by the full revaluation P&L vector
    • Historical Simulation Taylor VaR – p-quantile of the empirical distribution generated by the sensitivity-based P&L vector.
    • Non-normal Parametric VaR – Parametric VaR output for some benchmarks will use non – normal, “fat tailed” distributions such as Student T or General Pareto distributions
    • DCO (CCP) monitoring – DCO (CCP) margin model specifications will be mirrored in the benchmarking VaR methods to ascertain what a CCP would calculate for an equivalent risk
  • Ad-hoc backtests: the service provides for ad-hoc backtests to support clients’ use of SIMM™ through volatile or changing market conditions
  • Full support through the upcoming Risk Free Rates (RFR) transition from LIBOR
    • Monitor and support RFRs into the OIS Sub Curves of each respective currency
    • Calculate and support current LIBOR based curves
    • Monitor and apply the appropriate fallbacks to SOFR as prescribed by the industry and ISDA
    • Seamless transition to when IBORs are discontinued
    • Ability to source market data to value SOFR based product

Key Benefits:

  • Lower cost through mutualization
  • Reduced regulatory and operational risk by utilizing an industry standard process that achieves maximum automation
  • Validation of internal processes – useful comparison tool
  • Voice of the industry – Our service was developed with the industry via extensive input from working groups.

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