Continuous Linked Settlement:
RITS Session Times and Operational Arrangements – July 2015 5. Aspects of Reserve Bank Operations

5.1. Reserve Bank is an ‘Agreed’ Bank for SWIFT Payments

The prime purpose of RITS evening operations is to facilitate CLS settlement of FX instructions and other interbank payments that may be impacted by CLS. Accordingly, the Reserve Bank's role in the evening would normally be confined to ‘liquidity’ operations in RITS and Austraclear and any required contingency action.

Initially, the Reserve Bank did not propose to be an Evening Agreed bank^[1], to prevent any unexpected changes in system liquidity during the evening arising from SWIFT payments to the Reserve Bank (for example, for the credit of one of its Commonwealth government customers). However, it may be desirable for some SWIFT payments to the Reserve Bank to be made in the evening. Accordingly, the Reserve Bank has become an Evening Agreed bank.

The Reserve Bank will closely monitor the system for transactions that may unexpectedly change system liquidity and will take appropriate action.

Note that SWIFT payments to the Reserve Bank on behalf of domestic customers and of message type MT103 must be sent to RITS by 16:30 and should be settled by 17:15.

The Reserve Bank's Domestic Markets dealing room and its back office settlements area are staffed until the Austraclear cut-off time (18:30 AEST/20:30 AEDT) while the RITS Help Desk is staffed throughout RITS evening operations.

5.2. Intraday RBA Repos and Liquidity

The intraday RBA Repo facility is available during the Evening Settlement Session.

Any bank may take out an intraday RBA Repo during the Morning Settlement, Daily Settlement, Settlement Close or Evening Settlement Sessions. Intraday RBA Repos should be reversed before RITS closes for value transactions. For Evening Agreed banks, this is the end of the Evening Settlement Session. Normal arrangements (i.e. request for an intraday RBA Repo to be extended overnight and penalty interest) will apply for intraday RBA Repos taken out by these banks that are not reversed by the end of the Evening Settlement Session.

It is expected that non-Evening Agreed banks will generally reverse intraday RBA Repos before the end of the Settlement Close Session. If a non-Evening Agreed bank plans to reverse an intraday RBA Repo after this time, they should advise the Reserve Bank's Domestic Markets dealing room in each instance, as early as possible before the end of the Settlement Close Session. A non-Evening Agreed bank may also, if necessary, enter into a new intraday RBA Repo during the evening.

In all circumstances, a non-Evening Agreed bank must maintain front and back office staffing until the reversal of any outstanding intraday RBA Repos (or arrangements with the Reserve Bank for taking the intraday RBA Repo overnight) are concluded.

Reversals of intraday RBA Repos of non-Evening Agreed banks that are on the RTGS queue at the end of the Settlement Close Session will be removed from the queue and returned to Austraclear. These reversals may be re-sent to RITS in the Interim or Evening Settlement Sessions; such instances must be advised to the Reserve Bank prior to the end of the Settlement Close Session (see above). Existing arrangements will apply for intraday RBA Repos extended overnight.

Footnote

System parameters would allow RBA Repo and other liquidity operations to proceed even if the Reserve Bank is not evening agreed. [1]