For interest rate swaps cleared by Japan Securities Clearing Corporation (JSCC), variation margin is the amount that covers the change in net present value (NPV) from the previous business day. The NPV of the 4:00 p.m. positions is calculated with the 3:02 p.m. yield curves of the day and of the previous business day.
JSCC also marks listed derivatives to market at least once a day and exchanges variation margin (or the mark-to-market difference) with clearing participants. The daily mark-to-market difference on futures is one such payment.