Treasury Bills Risk Triggers Higher H.K. Margin Discount
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Hong Kong’s futures and options market operator said traders will need to put up additional collateral when using some U.S. Treasury bills to back their positions, citing concern the U.S. is at risk of a default.
Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd. will impose a “haircut” of 3 percent on Treasuries with maturities of less than one year in margin requirements for index futures and options, it said today in a circular. That’s up from 1 percent previously, and charges for Treasuries with longer maturities aren’t affected, according to the circular.