EBS Sets Sights on Running Central System for FX Fix

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Top Headlines

EBS Sets Sights on Running Central System for FX Fix – Reuters
Currency trading platform EBS has been approached by major banks to provide a computerised system removing much of the human element behind a scandal over the manipulation of currency benchmarks by lenders, a senior EBS manager said.

Dollar Falls as Manufacturing Drop Highlights Slower US Growth – Bloomberg
The dollar dropped for a second day after a larger-than-forecast decline in manufacturing added to signs economic growth is faltering and fuelled speculation the Federal Reserve will push back the timetable for raising interest rates.

Ringgit Gains Most Since 2013 as Dollar Extends Loss on Fed Bets –Bloomberg
Malaysia’s ringgit gained the most since September 2013 as the dollar extended losses after disappointing US data prompted traders to pare rate-increase bets.

Keeping Yuan Stable Hits China’s Currency Reserves – Wall Street Journal(subscription)
China’s foreign exchange reserves fell the most on record in the last three months. A big reason for the drop: China’s central bank sold its dollar holdings to bolster the yuan’s value.

HKMA Continues to Defend USD/HKD Peg – Profit & Loss (free story)
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority intervened twice in the FX markets last week to defend its 32-year Hong Kong dollar peg against the US dollar, after the strong demand for stocks put intense upward pressure on the SAR’s currency.

Turkey Worse Than Brazil in Currency Markets Wrecked by Politics –Bloomberg
For a view of how unnerving Turkey’s elections are becoming for investors, consider the currency market. The lira has just surpassed Brazil’s real for this year’s biggest nosedive.

CME Calls for Circuit Breakers Across FX Platforms – FX Week (subscription)
CME Group would like to see so-called circuit breakers adopted across a greater number of foreign exchange platforms that facilitate over-the-counter trading in order to prevent abnormal price discovery in currency pairs during volatile events, according to the exchange’s executive director for FX products.

Regulatory News

Anti-Wall Street Senator Lambasts Bank Non-Prosecution Deals – FinancialTimes (subscription)
Elizabeth Warren, the anti-Wall Street senator, has lashed out at US regulators for being soft on misbehaving banks, describing settlements that extracted billion dollar fines as a “slap on the wrist” and demanding that banks be put on trial.

London Stakes Its Claim as Global Bitcoin Hub – Reuters
British authorities have come out in support of digital currencies in the name of promoting financial innovation, while proposing that regulations should be drawn up to prevent their use in crime.

Company News

JP Morgan Highlights SNB Move as Boost to Q1 Profits – Profit & Loss (free story)
JP Morgan has reported a 12% increase in year-on-year profits with a net income of $5.9 billion and total revenue of $24.8 billion, which it says was fuelled in part by macro events including the Swiss National Bank removal of the ceiling which drove “robust client activity” in trading.

Volatility Pushes BAML’s FX Revenues to Record Levels – Profit & Loss (free story)
Bank of America Merrill Lynch says its fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC) business recorded the highest quarterly FX sales and trading revenue since the Merrill Lynch merger, following increased FX volatility which led to “higher client flows and revenues” in Q1.

Deutsche Bank Said to Lose Traders as Strategy Review Looms – Bloomberg
Deutsche Bank lost two senior traders on the emerging markets and foreign exchange teams in London last month, adding to a series of departures as the bank reviews its strategy, said a person with knowledge of the matter.

FXCM Sees Over 50% Rise in Institutional FX Volumes for March – Profit &Loss (free story)
FXCM has reported a substantial uptick in FX trading volume for March 2015 across both institutional and retail client segments.

Alpari UK CHF Currency Pair Trade Values Confirmed by KPMG; Creditors Set to Receive 51 Cents in the Dollar – LeapRate
KPMG has announced a client money distribution of 51 cents in the dollar for Alpari UK clients, as well as having confirmed the value of CHF trades that were open on 15 January when Alpari became insolvent. The total amount of client funds recovered to date amounts to $98,653,088.

Market Savvy  

Position for USDJPY Ahead of BoJ Meeting
BNP Paribas
We recommend positioning via options for USDJPY upside ahead of the 30 April Bank of Japan (BoJ) meeting. While we expect the BoJ to leave policy unchanged, we anticipate market participants will begin positioning for a possible policy surprise ahead of the meeting.

Press Releases

Scott+Scott Announces New Settlement in Class Action Litigation Involving Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates
Scott+Scott, Attorneys at Law has reached an agreement in principle with Bank of America NA on behalf of a proposed class in re Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litigation, Case No. 1:13-cv-7789 (SDNY). The settlement agreement includes both monetary relief and cooperation to the plaintiffs in their prosecution of claims against the remaining defendants.

BATS Migrates US Options Exchange to NY5 Data Centre
BATS Global Markets (BATS), an operator of exchanges and services for financial markets globally, reported the successful and complete migration of the BATS Options market to the Equinix NY5 data centre in Secaucus, NJ, on Monday, 13 April.

Industry Events