Loan Operations
The Loan Market Association, as the trade body for the syndicated loan market in EMEA, seeks to bring about increased efficiencies and standardisation. One way in which this challenge is faced is through the Loan Operations Committee.
The principal aims of the LMA's Loan Operations Committee are to:
- broker process change and assist in effecting operational efficiencies across the loan market;
- identify and address impediments to settlement times in both the primary and secondary loan markets;
- discuss challenges (legal or otherwise) affecting the operational efficiency of the syndicated loan market, and to lobby key decision-makers as appropriate;
- provide a series of dedicated events specifically aimed at participants working in operations and agency teams, to assist them in furthering their knowledge of the sector generally and also in understanding their role in promoting the efficient administration of syndicated loans; and
- maintain the spotlight on loan operations at the highest level.
Committees
As the trade body for the syndicated loan market in EMEA, it is essential that we enable our members to engage in work that we undertake, on behalf of the industry, to increase efficiency and standardisation.
The principal way in which members can participate is to be a member of the Loan Operations Committee. In order to fulfil the aims that are set out at the top of this page, the committee is comprised of a number of sub-committees which Loan Operations Committee members can participate in. These sub-committees address specific issues that impact operational efficiency and settlement times by focusing on particular segments of the syndicated loan market.
For more information click the arrow to go to our committees page.
Documentation & Market Guidelines
LMA recommended documentation is widely used through EMEA. It has facilitated the increase in liquidity to international markets, reduced documentation risk and aided members in the effective management of their loan portfolios.
Most recently, the Committee released the template Global Administrative Details Form, which seeks to provide a standard format for communicating key administrative detail.
In addition, we aim to launch a number of market guidelines pertinent to loan operations, some of which currently include:
- Agents Guide to Handling Ancillary Facilities;
- Guide to Secondary Loan Market Transactions;
- Guide to Agency Protections; and
- Improving Liquidity in the Secondary Market.
A number of other publications are currently in production in collaboration with the Loan Operations Committee.
We constantly monitor trends in the market to ensure our guidelines are up-to-date and accommodate current market practice as well as regulatory and legal requirements where applicable.
Education & Events
On 4 June 2018, the LMA hosted its fourth Loan Operations Conference with attendance building since the inaugural event in 2015.
We also organise Loan Operation panels at other LMA conferences to keep the wider market aware of new developments and run training events, including our e-learning platform, to educate the market on topics pertinent to Loan Operations.
On 17 October 2016, we launched our first e-learning course "Understanding the Loan Market". The purpose of this course is to help create a knowledge benchmark for practitioners in the syndicated loan market - a benchmark that we believe will be key to drive efficiencies going forward. We therefore encourage market participants to subscribe to this course.
Regulation & Lobbying
We play a vital role in monitoring regulatory developments and in making sure that new legislation does not have unintended consequences for the loan market.
Most recently the Committee has assisted us in formulating responses to a variety of consultations on AML and CTF regimes.
We publish regular alerts on changes to legislation and regulatory consultations, as well as engaging our committees to respond to matters arising in the market.