(9)The margin requirements set out in the Guidelines on margins apply to ‘persons who are exempt from holding a capital markets services license under section 99(1)(a) or (b) of the SFA’ (‘MAS Covered Entity’), which refers to banks licensed under the Banking Act of Singapore and merchant banks. Sovereigns, central banks, public sector entities, eligible multilateral agencies, organisation or entities, the Bank for International Settlements, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development are exempted from exchange of margins under the Guidelines. The definition of an ‘MAS Covered Entity’ is therefore a subset of the definition of ‘financial counterparty’ in Regulation (EU) No 648/2012. This decision should therefore cover the legal, supervisory and enforcement arrangements regarding operational risk mitigation and exchange of collateral obligations applicable to MAS Covered Entities.