Top Headlines
The latest breakdown shows the two countries still haven’t found a way to negotiate effectively.
Council Adopts Updated Rules for Financial Derivative Products and Clearing – European Council
The regulation adopted by ministers today amends and simplifies EMIR. In particular, it introduces a new category of “small financial counterparties”, which will be exempted from the obligation to clear their transactions through a central counterparty, while remaining subject to risk mitigation obligations.
LCH Removes FX Spot, Forwards Restrictions – FOW (subscription)
The LSEG-owned clearinghouse will clear FX spot and forwards in their own right.
Financial Data Terminal Refinitiv Eikon Faces ‘Major Incident’ – Financial Times (subscription)
Refinitiv Eikon, a financial data terminal used by investors and media companies, suffered a “major incident” on Tuesday morning. The issue that prevented users globally from logging on began 4.51am BST, just before dealings in London typically get under way. It appeared to have been resolved for some users by 9am.
Regulatory News
Regulators Cut Banks Some Slack on Shift Away from Libor – Financial Times (subscription)
A Bank of England working group meeting on Tuesday is expected to allow banks to develop new rates to more closely match their sterling funding and lending costs. The move echoes steps taken by the body overseeing the new US benchmark to replace dollar Libor last month.
How to Guard Against Mifid’s Unplanned Effects – Financial Times (subscription)
Requiring asset managers to pay separately for research, thereby forcing brokers to name its cost explicitly, has led to a clear drop in spending. That has affected brokerages’ bottom lines, leading many to reduce the quantity and quality of research they do. That may seem like a bad thing; but this slashing of research spending is in many ways a feature, not a bug.
FCA Keen to Press on with Non-Brexit Issues – FOW (subscription)
Financial Conduct Authority chief exec Andrew Bailey is concerned about losing sight of other big issues.
Crypto News
$8,300: Bitcoin Price Erupts in Parabolic Rally, Spikes 17% Within Hours – CCN
In one month, the bitcoin price surged by over 67.5 percent and as such, technical analysts expected the dominant cryptocurrency to experience a pullback. However, the strong fear of missing out of investors in the global market supplemented by the drastic surge in the volumes of major exchanges like BitMEX and markets such as CME have further fueled the momentum of bitcoin.
Crypto Hedge Fund Survivors Lost 46% in 2018, PwC Analysis Shows – Bloomberg
The cryptocurrency hedge funds that survived the 2018 market collapse lost almost half their assets, according to the most comprehensive accounting of its impact on the industry.
Bakkt Sets July Test Date for Bitcoin Futures – CoinDesk
Bakkt, through ICE, will self-certify its bitcoin futures products, meaning that the CFTC will have to assess whether or not the proposals violate any laws or regulations. If the regulator does not find any issues within a 10-day deadline, the products will move forward.
Academics Sceptical on Economic Value of Cryptocurrencies – Profit & Loss
Academics speaking at CoinDesk’s Consensus event in New York appear doubtful about the economic value of cryptocurrencies.
Company News
Liquidnet Expands into Research with RSRCHXchange Purchase – Financial Times (subscription)
The deal to acquire RSRCHXchange, a four-year-old company based in London, expands the stock trading network’s services into the realm of investment insights for the first time, as it tries to capitalise on opportunities unlocked by Mifid II, the European regulation that came into effect last year.
CFH Clearing Extends Metals Offering – Profit & Loss
CFH Clearing is now offering trading in aluminium, copper, nickel, lead and Zinc against USD.
AllianceBernstein to Adopt OpenFin Operating System – Profit & Loss
AllianceBernstein is working with OpenFin, which provides an operating system to financial services firms, in a bid to help accelerate its digital transformation strategy.
Siege FX to Roll Out Peer-to-Peer Netting – FX Week (subscription)
While there have been calls from buy-side market participants for a fair and transparent netting service for several years, no such tool has emerged for financial institutions active in the foreign exchange industry. That is until now, with the creation of Siege FX, a peer-to-peer netting service founded by Claude Goulet, its chief executive.
The Taekwondo Black Belt Who Runs Nasdaq – BBC News
What makes Ms Friedman’s success at Nasdaq particularly impressive is that she started out at the company on the lowest rung of the ladder. She first joined the business back in 1993 as a 24-year-old unpaid intern.
Market Savvy
Sterling Stuck at Two-Week Low as Investors Await UK Jobs Data – Reuters
Sterling hit a two-week low on Tuesday ahead of UK employment data that investors will scrutinise for signs of how much British businesses are hurting from uncertainty over Brexit.
Yuan Rises After Trump Says Trade Talks Could Succeed – Reuters
China’s yuan and the Australian dollar regained some poise on Tuesday after upbeat comments from US President Donald Trump suggested trade talks with Beijing could yet make headway.
Many investors fear that the recent volatility in markets is here to stay. The Cboe Volatility Index, or VIX, jumped almost 30% on Monday, marking its biggest one-day advance since October, when concerns about the US economy spurred stock selling.