The first STEP labels granted to short-term paper programmes will be announced at the European Central Bank (ECB) tomorrow.
The Short-Term European Paper (STEP) initiative aims to foster the integration of the European markets for short-term paper through the convergence of market standards and practices, with the aim of enhancing market depth and liquidity and increasing the diversification opportunities for issuers (both financial and non-financial institutions) and investors.
The ACI-The Financial Markets Association and the European Banking Federation are the main promoters of the STEP initiative, which is supported by the Eurosystem of Central Banks. The statistics on the issues made under these STEP-labelled programmes will be compiled by the ECB and made available on its website.
The STEP initiative relies on the STEP Market Convention. The STEP Market Convention lays down the criteria which must be fulfilled by a short-term paper programme to be STEP compliant and the procedures for granting and withdrawing the STEP label. The STEP requirements relate to the disclosure of information, the format for documentation, the settlement and the provision of data for the production of STEP statistics, and not to the creditworthiness of issuers or the accuracy of the information provided. During the first two years, the Eurosystem will provide technical assistance in relation to specific tasks related to the granting and withdrawal of the STEP label.