Top Headlines
NEX Group Subsidiary Agrees $50m Settlement over ISDAFIX Manipulation – Profit & Loss
Intercapital Capital Markets, a NEX Group subsidiary formerly known as ICAP Capital Markets, has agreed a $50 million settlement with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission in relation to allegations that some of its brokers aided and abetted attempts by several of its bank clients to manipulate the ISDAFIX benchmark.
Foreign Exchange Turnover Rises in August: CLS – Reuters
Daily currency trading volumes rose 1.5 percent in August versus the same month last year, CLS data showed on Wednesday, although August’s volumes were lower than the previous month of July.
Mifid II Data for Market Monitoring Still Limited: BIS – FOW (subscription)
Data for monitoring activity on FX and other fast-paced electronic markets is still limited, the BIS says.
Fresh Whistleblower Concerns Should Ring Alarm Bells at Barclays – Financial News (subscription)
How can financial institutions ensure their employees behave properly? They can spend a fortune on monitoring behaviour, rewarding the good and punishing the bad. Yet there is a limit to how much a compliance department can do.
Wall Street Fears the End of an Era – Bloomberg
Credit traders at some of the world’s largest banks are convinced hedge funds and brokers have penetrated their members-only club. The claim is that rivals and even clients are now accessing information from trading platforms that have long been the exclusive domain of the banks.
Nasdaq Clearing Sees Nothing Wrong in the Market – FOW (subscription)
Nasdaq Clearing sees member default as an isolated event rather than a consequence of broader market issues.
Performance Rebound Teases Macro Hedge Fund Investors – Financial Times (subscription)
Swings in emerging markets and a continuing march higher by the US dollar have given a boost to one of the highest-profile yet poorest-performing classes of hedge fund, so-called macro funds.
EU Could Challenge UK Clearing Dominance to Avoid “Failure”: Expert – FOW (subscription)
The idea that UK clearing dominance cannot be challenged is what they said about bailing out banks, an expert says.
Regulatory News
UK Regulators Ask Bank CEOs to Detail Plans for Shift from Libor – Financial Times (subscription)
UK authorities are renewing their efforts to get markets off the tarnished Libor interest rate benchmark, asking chief executives of major banks and insurers supervised in the UK to detail their preparations to move to alternative rates.
FIA Transfer Protocol Sets Brexit Plans in Motion – Risk.net (subscription)
Dealers in the UK are expected to start transferring client positions to European Union affiliates as early as next month, using a shortcut released by FIA, the futures trade body.
MiFID III is ‘Further Away Than Many Might Expect’ Says MEP Swinburne – The Trade
Swinburne highlights access, competition and consolidated tape as areas for improvement with existing MiFID II regulations.
‘Wild West’ Crypto-Asset Markets Need UK Regulation, Say MPs – Financial Times (subscription)
MPs have urged the government to regulate “Wild West” crypto-asset markets, citing concern over investor protection and money laundering, but have said that with appropriate regulation the UK could become a “global centre” for the nascent sector.
Pension Funds Could Halve Initial Margin Costs By Clearing – FOW (subcription)
Margin costs could increase tenfold for pension funds under the uncleared margin rules, an OpenGamma study finds.
The Broken Conversation About Financial Regulation – Financial Times (subscription)
Discussion of post-crisis regulations really only take place in extremely rarefied and specialist settings. In fact, this is one of the main reasons that attempts to engage with the topic are usually replete with omissions.
Crypto News
A number of cryptocurrency exchanges lack basic consumer protections and are vulnerable to exploitation by market manipulators, the New York attorney general’s office said in a report Tuesday.
CME’s Crypto Partners Get Called Out by New York Regulators – Bloomberg
Three of the cryptocurrency exchanges that help power CME Group’s Bitcoin futures market have raised red flags with New York state regulators.
Asian Demand High for Bitcoin Futures: Trading Legend Don Wilson – CoinDesk
Don Wilson, founder of high-speed trading firm DRW, said bitcoin derivatives trading in Asia hours is almost equal to the volume he’s seen in the US, something he says is an anomaly when compared to other financial instruments.
Don’t Blame Bitcoin Futures for Bear Market, CME Exec Says – CoinDesk
Tim McCourt, managing director and global head of equity products and alternative investments of the CME Group, has said that bitcoin futures are not to be blamed for the price slump in the crypto market this year.
Company News
P&L Talk Series with Ericsson’s Marcus Samuelsson – Profit & Loss
Marcus Samuelsson, portfolio manager at Ericsson, talks about what “best execution” means from a corporate’s perspective.
TORA Integrates OEMS with NEX Group for MiFID II Reporting – The Trade
TORA and NEX Group have partnered to help clients meet MiFID II trade and transaction reporting requirements.
DSB to Roll-Out Complex Product Suite for SI Regime – FOW (subscription)
Derivatives Services Bureau is expanding its ISIN offering to cater for systematic internalisers under Mifid II.
Market Savvy
Dollar Takes Heat as Investors Look Beyond Trade War Escalation – Financial Times (subscription)
The market had plenty of time to prepare for the US tariff imposition on $200bn of Chinese imports, hence the nonchalant reaction this week. “A big yawn” – that was the description of Société Générale’s Kit Juckes.
- Asia Trades Higher as Investors Shrug Off Escalating US-China Trade Tensions – CNBC
- Dollar at Two-Month Highs against Yen on Trade War Relief – Reuters
Sterling Rises Above $1.32 on UK Inflation Data; Traders Eye EU Summit – Reuters
The pound rose to a nine-week high on Wednesday, helped by strong UK inflation data and as investors prepared for a European Union summit where diplomats will try to pave the way for an agreement on Brexit.
Goldman Fund Buys Turkey, Argentina Debt, Says Rout Overdone – Bloomberg
Goldman Sachs Asset Management is buying Turkish and Argentinian government debt as it bets on the worst-performing emerging markets to offer some of the more profitable bond trades this year.