Top Headlines
CME FX Volume Surges in September, NEX Also Higher – Profit & Loss
CME Group has reported the second busiest month for its FX contracts since September 2014. The exchange group reports that it handled 1.132 million contracts on a daily basis in September, a 28.2% increase on August.
Traders Are So Scared of Regulators They’ve Even Quit Swearing – Bloomberg
After a global scandal that cost them $14 billion in fines and settlements, banks are taking no chances – they’re even cracking down on currency traders for offenses as minor as uttering the f-word on the phone.
FX Market Structure in Flux – The Future of FX Derivatives Markets – FX Week (subscription)
White paper explores the impact of the financial crisis on FX derivatives, the effectiveness of clearing, compression and optimisation tools in minimising costs, and what lies ahead for FX derivatives markets.
Revealed: Deutsche Bank Trader With a $24,000 Daily Bonus – Bloomberg
Defense lawyers for two former Deutsche Bank AG traders accused of manipulating the benchmark Libor lending rate suggested in federal court that a key government witness had minimized the scope of his own crimes to get a more lenient sentence and to retain a $9 million bonus.
Exchange Legacy: WFE Tackles the Question of the Role of Exchanges – JLN
The World Federation of Exchanges’ General Assembly and Annual Meeting, being held this week in Athens, is asking questions such as: What is the exchange and CCP role in bringing economies back to life? How do they best enable sustainable development? How can they serve their stakeholders better?
Regulatory News
Steven Maijoor, chairman of Esma, has urged policymakers to finish plans to monitor clearing houses based outside the bloc’s borders that do business with European companies.
Chairman Giancarlo Releases Cross-Border White Paper – CFTC
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo has released a white paper titled “Cross-Border Swaps Regulation Version 2.0: A Risk-Based Approach with Deference to Comparable Non-US Regulation.”
Esma: What’s on the Menu for 2019? – Global Investor (subscription)
Europe’s financial regulator has Brexit, CMU, investment management, securities finance and innovation on its 2019 priority list.
FCA Promises No Regulatory ‘Race to the Bottom’ Post Brexit – Law360 (subscription)
The Financial Conduct Authority will resist any pressure to ease regulatory restraints on financial services to enhance the sector’s global competitiveness after Britain leaves the European Union.
Moving the Goalposts: EU Fights Over Prop Trader Rules – Risk.net (subscription)
French proposals could drive larger non-banks out of fixed income futures and options.
Goldman, BAML Back Trace Reporting Changes – Risk.net (subscription)
Banks are pushing for a 48-hour delay in reporting large corporate bond trades.
MAS Goes Live with Reporting Requirement for OTC Commodity, Equity Trades – Regulation Asia
Firms must report OTC derivatives transactions in commodities and equities to a licensed trade repository.
Crypto News
CFTC Chair Chris Giancarlo on the Future of Crypto (video) – CNBC
CFTC Chair Chris Giancarlo discusses cryptocurrencies and regulation.
Coinbase Hires Former Instinet CEO to Lead Institutional Sales – The Trade Crypto
Jonathan Kellner will take charge of the institutional business at Coinbase after leading agency broker Instinet as CEO since 2014.
Regulatory Compliance Head at HKEX Appointed COO at BitMEX – The Trade Crypto
Angelina Kwan has been head of regulatory compliance at HKEX since 2015 and has also spent eight years working with the SFC in Hong Kong. She joins the Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange (BitMEX) as its new chief operating officer.
Cryptocurrencies: King’s Ransom or Fool’s Gold? – Risk.net (subscription)
Extreme volatility makes products an unreliable store of value – for now.
Abusive software runs largely unchecked on crypto exchanges, prompting regulatory concern.
Company News
Increased Volatility Lures Marex Spectron Back to FX – Profit & Loss
Marex Spectron has returned to the FX markets with the launch of a new platform that includes a desktop and mobile app for FX and precious metal spot trading and market monitoring.
Dewhurst to Head FX and EM Sales at SocGen – FX Week (subscription)
Alexandre Dewhurst has been promoted to head of foreign exchange and emerging market sales at Societe Generale, based in London.
Market Savvy
Euro Lifted Off Six-Week Low By Italian Budget Speculation – Reuters
The euro rebounded on Wednesday after reports that Italy plans to reduce its budget deficit over the next three years, but traders said the rally could be short-lived.
Sterling Steadies Near Three-Week Low Before May’s Speech, PMI – Reuters
The British pound held near a three-week low on Wednesday as investors waited on the sidelines before services survey data and Prime Minister Theresa May’s speech later in the day.
Steady Swissie Shrugs Off Italian Budget Drama – Financial Times (subscription)
Muted reaction of safe haven currency suggests jitters from Rome are unlikely to spread.
Emerging Markets: Turkish Lira Dips as Inflation Soars, Broader Emerging FX Sluggish – Reuters
Soaring inflation hammered Turkish bonds and the lira on Wednesday and India’s rupee hit a fresh record low as high oil prices and a solid dollar kept the pressure on emerging markets.