December 17, 2014: FX platforms Halt Ruble Trade as Banks Wary of Capital Controls

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Top Headlines

FX platforms Halt Ruble Trade as Banks Wary of Capital Controls – Reuters

Retail currency trading platforms halted trading in rubles, citing growing signs of stress among the banks that underpin trade in the battered Russian currency.

 

BAML Names Co-Heads of Global FICC Trading – The Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Bank of America Merrill Lynch has tapped Bernard Mensah and James DeMare to be the co-heads of global fixed income, currencies and commodities trading. Mensah and DeMare will replace retiring David Sobotka. 

 

Asia: The Promised Land for FICC – Financial News (subscription)

Want a fixed income, currencies and commodities unit which is growing, beats its cost of equity, and has a highly stable client base? Then you’re going to have to look further east than a Canary Wharf trading floor.

 

Russian Ruble Suffers New Fall But Collapse Slows – Reuters

The dramatic fall in Russia’s ruble slowed on Wednesday, with the government selling foreign currency to prop it up after a 50% fall against the dollar this year.

Russia Central Bank Investigating Possible Manipulation on FX Market – Reuters

Russia’s central bank has started investigating possible manipulation on the foreign currency market, Vladimir Chistyukhin, a deputy governor of the central bank, told reporters on Wednesday.

 

Contagion Fears Ignited By Ruble Moves – FX Week (subscription)

The trouble in Russia is spreading to other currency pairs in emerging markets and causing bouts of volatility in G10 pairs as traders struggle to get business done. Spreads of other EM currency pairs are widening out and participants warn of a liquidity shortage in traditionally healthy pairs.

Regulatory News

UK Regulators Hit Hurdles on Fixing Benchmarks – The Wall Street Journal (subscription)

UK regulators are expected to report in the coming weeks on plans to fix global financial benchmarks but efforts so far under way are running into difficulties. Proposed changes to the principal currency benchmark have already been pushed into next year.

 

Republicans Include Dodd-Frank Reform in Spending Bill – Profit & Loss (subscription)

Republicans in the US House of Representatives have included a provision easing certain rules relating to swaps trading to a $1.1 trillion government spending package that was passed by Congress last week.

 

Cyber Security Continues its Rise up the US Regulatory Agenda – Profit & Loss (subscription)

Cyber security is increasingly becoming an area of focus for regulators and lawmakers overseeing the financial services industry in the US.

Company News

Error Prompts Nearly Full-Day Shutdown of ISE Options Markets – Bloomberg

The two US options markets run by International Securities Exchange were closed for most of Monday’s session due to a technology malfunction.

 

RBS Confirms Exit From Japan Trading Amid Global Overhaul – Bloomberg

The Royal Bank of Scotland will close its trading business in Japan while maintaining sales operations as part of a global overhaul.

Market Savvy  

Will the FOMC Blink?

Saxo Bank

All markets’ eyes will be on the FOMC meeting this evening, with the most intense attention on the “considerable time” that has seemingly been around forever.

Press Releases

TriOptima Completes Cross Currency Swap Compression In USD/Turkish Lira

TriOptima says 17 financial institutions eliminated $213 billion in the first USD/TRY cross currency swap TriReduce compression cycle.

 

RMB Products and Services in London Register Substantial Growth

A new report published by the City of London Corporation shows that London saw a rapid growth of foreign exchange activity in renminbi products in the first half of 2014. 

 

Industry Events