Practical Guidance for Treasurers - 2021: A Benchmark Odyssey

It is six months since the FCA announced that it will cease to support the production of LIBOR after 2021. The quest for alternatives to LIBOR has since accelerated, but some difficult questions are yet to be answered. Most notably, while the difficulties of transitioning multi-lateral products such as syndicated loans and floating rate notes to an alternative rate have become more widely understood, how those difficulties might be addressed remains unclear.  

This guidance note outlines the current status of the “benchmark odyssey”, what treasurers can contribute to the debate and how the potential demise of LIBOR might be managed in transactions extending beyond 2021.