I . Resignation and Election of Members

Mr. Hoshino, Chairperson of the Committee, reported that Mr. Maeba, Mr. Atsuta, and Mr. Uchiyama expressed their wishes to resign the Committee. Mr. Hoshino, Chairperson of the Committee, also reported that he received an application from Mr. Fumihiko Kawano (Nomura Securities). After reviewing Committee members’ recommendations and Mr. Kawano's speech, a vote was taken, and the candidate was elected unanimously as a member of the Committee. The Committee decided to table the election of a replacement for Mr. Atsuta for another time.

Mr. Hoshino, Chairperson of the Committee, suggested that Mr. Uchiyama, Associate Member of the Committee, be replaced by Mr. Yoshiki Yamamoto (Mizuho Corporate Bank), and it was approved.

II . Survey Methods of “Turnover Survey of Tokyo FX Market”

Mr. Nakano, Vice-Chairperson of the Committee, reported that in order to improve the survey methods of “Turnover Survey of Tokyo FX Market” which would be conducted in April, a briefing session for interested parties was held at the Bank of Japan on March 15th.

Mr. Hoshino, Chairperson of the Committee, reported that he visited the Financial Futures Association of Japan in mid-March and proposed to discuss the survey methods in order to measure the market size of foreign exchange margin trading.

III . Exchange of Information on Financial Regulation

With regard to the discussion on the financial reform bill in the United States, Mr. Kuzuhara, Associate Member of the Committee, reported that the bill so far seemed likely to include the mandatory use of the central counterparty (CCP) for clearing interest rate swaps and credit default swaps. He continued that although the bill was expected to be approved later this year, some of these swaps had already started to be cleared through the CCP in the United States.

As for the reform of financial regulation in Japan, Mr. Kuzuhara, Associate Member of the Committee, reported that the Cabinet approved a bill for partial amendment of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, etc., on March 9th. He added that the current bill was similar to the one in the United States, and it required the interest rate swaps and credit default swaps to be cleared through the CCP but did not regulate over-the-counter (OTC) foreign exchange derivatives.