A member of a clearing organisation. Each clearing member must also be a member of the exchange. Not all members of the exchange, however, are members of the clearing organisation. All trades of a non-clearing member must be registered with, and eventually settled through a clearing member. In the case of over-the-counter (OTC) clearing, there are two types of clearing house memberships: direct and client cleared. Direct members must meet the central counterparty’s (CCP’s) membership requirements (e.g., a minimum size of trade portfolio, a minimum amount of tier 1 capital and a minimum credit rating) to qualify as a member of the CCP. A client clearing member usually cannot meet the CCP’s membership requirements and needs to clear through a direct member. A relationship must be negotiated in order for the direct member to act as a clearing broker or futures commission merchant (FCM), interacting with the CCP on its behalf. It is the member's ultimate responsibility to guarantee performance.