In addition to changes in swap execution following the financial crisis, regulators also introduced a significant push for swaps to be centrally cleared. Similar to the way futures contracts are handled. Central clearing means the swaps go through a separate clearing organization, which guarantees both sides of the swap in case anything went wrong.

Non-cleared swaps are not cleared and settled centrally. The diagram illustrates the success of this regulatory initiative with the vast majority of interest rate derivatives or IRDs now being cleared. It's also important to note that the introduction of new margining rules for non-cleared swaps in the wholesale market has helped to level the playing field between cleared and non-cleared trades. These rules require non-cleared swaps to be margined in a similar way to cleared swaps, which has brought more protection to the non-cleared markets, which has made the cost of trading non-cleared swaps comparable to cleared ones. As a result, most swaps are now centrally cleared, reflecting the regulatory goal of increasing transparency and reducing systemic risk in the derivatives markets.