Three Banks Joins CLS CCS Service

BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole CIB and Natixis CIB have joined settlement services provider CLS’ cross currency swaps (CCS) offering.

“BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole CIB and Natixis CIB will all benefit from the efficiencies and risk reduction that CLS’s services provide,” says Lisa Danino-Lewis, chief growth officer at CLS. “With increased market volatility driven by geopolitical uncertainty, the past year has highlighted the importance of sound risk mitigation and operational resilience for market participants.”

Due to the high value of the initial and final principal exchanges, cross currency swaps trades involve significant settlement risk exposure, while settling these trades on a gross bilateral basis can result in operational inefficiencies and liquidity constraints. CLS’s CCS service can be used in conjunction with the post-trade processing platform Osttra MarkitWire to integrate CCS flows into the main CLS Settlement mechanism, allowing participants to benefit from multilateral netting against all FX transactions. CLS says this not only optimises liquidity but also significantly reduces daily funding requirements.

CLS’s CCS solution has experienced significant growth according to the utility, which says the average daily settled value of CCS flows submitted to CLS Settlement rose 87% in 2025. It adds the growth in cross-currency swap flows to CLS Settlement bolsters the efforts of policymakers and regulators to promote the widespread adoption of payment-versus-payment (PvP) as a means of reducing settlement risk.

“Joining CLS’s Cross Currency Swaps service marks an important step in adopting best practices in our FX post-trade processes,” says Bruno D’Illiers, head of CIB ITO platforms at BNP Paribas. “The ability to bilaterally net and settle CCS transactions via CLS Settlement supports our broader efforts to increase operational efficiency, reduce risk, and optimise liquidity across our FX activity.”

Julien Serror, global head of cross currency swaps and CEE at Crédit Agricole CIB adds, “Mitigating settlement risk continues to be a primary focus for institutions such as Crédit Agricole CIB. Cross currency swaps in particular have a high settlement risk exposure, so we’re pleased to find a solution through CLS’s service. Making the move to multilateral netting will open up liquidity across our FX activity and support our operational efficiency – benefits our clients will be delighted with.”

Meanwhile, Olivier Lamy, macro markets – head of strategic projects at Natixis CIB, says, “The CCS service is an innovative solution to the problems facing firms everywhere, and its unique PvP settlement system and netting capabilities will enhance and improve our FX operations. We believe the settlement risk, liquidity, and funding benefits that CLS’S CCS service will provide will be hugely beneficial for our business.”