/EXCHANGES: Fitch Ratings noted US.........>

US BONDS: /EXCHANGES: Fitch Ratings noted US regulators "may sharpen focus on

clearing houses and CCPs." It said "increasing exposure to clearing houses and

central counterparties (CCPs) may in time attract more regulatory oversight and

scrutiny," according to Fitch's latest North American Financial Institutions

Chart of the Month.

- "The world's major clearing houses have benefitted from a generally supportive

regulatory environment that has created incentives for market participants to

clear transactions centrally as opposed to over-the-counter on a bilateral

basis," it said. "While this has boosted growth for CCPs, it has also resulted

in a steady increase of market participants' exposures to the CCPs."

- "The results of the recent regulatory stress tests published last month by the

US CFTC demonstrated that the world's largest CCPs generally have adequate

liquidity resources to complete their end-day settlements should a severe but

plausible market stress take place. ESMA has performed a similar exercise as a

part of its 2017 stress testing of EU CCPs, with the results expected to be

published early into 2018."