Allen sees this problem already playing out in the first annual report, particularly in terms of how little serious discussion was dedicated to the US debt problem, which clearly represents one of the major current systemic risks in the world. Even so, the new regulatory regime of derivative supervision is, in part, a response to commitments made by the G20 concerning the standardisation, central clearing, and methods of trading OTC derivatives. Australia is, of course, a member of the G20 and bound by the same commitments. The Australian Council of Financial Regulators – consisting of APRA, ASIC, RBA and Treasury – is also assessing the derivatives markets and is currently in the consultation phase with interested stakeholders concerning local reform. The initial consensus is that Australia is a less active OTC market relative to major offshore markets and trades are relatively simple vanilla products. However, the council recognises that market practices can be improved. The consultation paper suggests central clearing for interest rate derivatives as a first step to ensure ongoing confidence in these critical transactions. It will be interesting to see how these reforms, here and overseas, progress.