Ahead of the Fed: Tectonic Shifts in Bonds, Oil and the Dollar

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Top Headlines

Ahead of the Fed: Tectonic Shifts in Bonds, Oil and the Dollar – Wall Street Journal (subscription)
Investors fear the implications of a selloff in high-yield just days before the Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates.

Bitcoin: What’s in Store for 2016 – Bloomberg
While the hype may have faded a bit, 2015 was still a busy year for bitcoin. Venture capital investments topped $1 billion for the first time.

Zuma Makes U-Turn on Finance Chief, Triggering Rand Rebound – Bloomberg
South African President Jacob Zuma named his second finance minister in four days after criticism from business groups and his own party, sparking a rebound in rand and bonds.

More Money Enters Hedge Funds in December – Reuters
Investors’ pumped money into the $3 trillion hedge fund industry in December, data from the world’s second-biggest hedge fund administrator showed.

Regulatory News

Basel Proposal to Cause ‘Huge Problem’ for TLAC Market-Making – Risk
A proposal to force banks to deduct holdings of other dealers’ loss-absorbing debt from their capital buffers may make it difficult for dealers to act as market-makers for the potentially huge amount of securities due to be issued, according to capital experts.

US Regulators Weigh Limiting Funds’ Use of Derivatives – Reuters
US regulators are considering restrictions on how mutual, exchange-traded and other funds can use derivatives, with the Securities and Exchange Commission head saying she is concerned that investors are exposed to too much risk.

Bank of England Gives Banks Until 2020 to Build Crisis Funds – Reuters
Britain’s banks will have until 2020 to build crisis funds to shield taxpayers from having to bail out failed lenders again, the Bank of England said.

ECB Confirms Dates for CSDs to Join T2S – The Trade
The European Central Bank has announced new dates for central securities depositories to join up to its ambitious TARGET2-Securities initiative.

Company News

JP Morgan Appoints Tech Heads to Europe Board – E Financial News
Jane Moran, global chief information officer at Unilever, and Monique Shivanandan, chief information officer at Aviva, have been appointed as non-executive directors of JP Morgan Securities, the main legal unit of its business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Silverman Joins Cantor – Profit & Loss
Howard Silverman, one of the founders of Hotspot FX, is joining Cantor Fitzgerald shortly as a managing director, sources say. Silverman is spearheading the development of a new FX exchange for the firm, these sources say.

EBS Direct Provides Connectivity via Industry-Standard Protocol – Profit & Loss
EBS BrokerTec says customers can now connect to its FX platform – EBS Direct – via a FIX 4.4 API.

LiquidityEdge Sees Customer Numbers, Volumes Grow – Profit & Loss
LiquidityEdge, a new electronic platform for the US Treasuries market has signed up over 60 customers since it commenced live trading in early August, with interest in the platform, and volumes traded, continuing to grow.

More ANZ Traders Leave Over Compliance Breach? – Profit & Loss
At least two traders have been released by ANZ over breaches of the bank’s code of conduct, according to market sources, bringing the total to five thus far in 2015.

Market Savvy  

China’s Central Bank Signals Intention to Loosen Yuan’s Peg to Dollar – Wall Street Journal (subscription)
China’s central bank signaled its intention to change the way it manages the yuan’s value by potentially easing its loose peg to the U.S. dollar and instead letting it track the currencies of its broader trading partners.

It May Be Too Late Already for the Fed-ECB Divergence Trade – Bloomberg
The days of the divergence trade may be numbered.

Press Releases

Intercontinental Exchange Completes Acquisition Of Trayport – ICE
Intercontinental Exchange, the leading global network of exchanges and clearing houses, today announced it has completed its acquisition of Trayport from BGC Partners and GFI for approximately $650 million, comprising approximately 2.5 million ICE common shares.

CME Europe Trading Exceeds 1,000,000 Lots Since Launch – CME
CME Group, the world’s leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, announced today that one million contracts have now been traded on its London-based derivatives exchange, CME Europe.

Industry Events