Top Headlines
Refinitiv Aims to Spend to Take on Bloomberg – Financial Times (subscription)
“FX is our crown jewel asset class. . . it’s an amazing business. Why would you want to lose that when it is core to your platform?”
Cartel Judge Warns on Expert Testimony – FX Week (subscription)
A US District Court judge overseeing the price-rigging lawsuit against three former UK foreign exchange traders said on September 26 that he is concerned testimonies from expert witnesses in the case could potentially encroach on his role and that of the jury.
Mixed Results in Early Platform Volume Reports – Profit & Loss
The first group of FX trading venues to report average daily volumes for September paint a mixed picture with regards to the level of trading activity, much as they did at the end of August.
Hackathon Finds Pre-Trade Gold in Isda’s Post-Trade Project – Risk.net (subscription)
Dealers’ derivatives trade processing costs could be cut by at least $3 billion per year.
Pound Traders in Flash-Crash Flashback as Tory Conference Starts – Bloomberg
Pound bulls have good reason to be nervous this week. Sterling traders are anxiously watching the Conservative Party conference after UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s speeches at the previous two annual gatherings prompted declines.
- Sterling Falls to Three-Week Low as Tory Brexit Divisions on Show – Reuters
- Brexit Uncertainty and Strong Dollar Drag Pound Below $1.30 – Financial Times (subscription)
Your Guide to the Many Flavors of Quant Investing – Bloomberg
All quant strategies use technology and formulas to automate the investment process, rather than rely on an investor’s savvy or a trader’s skills. The resemblance ends there. Some strategies look for a tiny edge that can be exploited in a day; others scour global trends for investments that last for years.
Regulatory News
Giancarlo Lays Out Improvements to Cross-Border Swaps Rules – Global Investor (subscription)
CFTC chairman Christopher Giancarlo proposes a multi-lateral approach to cross-border swaps regulation.
MiFID II Data Needs to Be Reviewed After Brexit – Markets Media
Robert Ophèle, chairman of Autorite des Marches Financiers, the French regulator, said the thresholds in MiFID II need to be reviewed after the UK leaves the European Union.
ESMA Letter on Third Country Regimes – ESMA
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has written to the European Commission in relation to additional issues concerning some MiFID II/MiFIR requirements on investor protection and intermediaries. The letter is a follow-up to an earlier letter concerning some MIFID II/MIFIR requirements regarding trading venues.
IMF Appoints Harvard’s Gita Gopinath as Chief Economist – Financial Times (subscription)
The IMF has appointed Gita Gopinath as chief economist in a move that will challenge the fund to reshape its thinking around exchange rates.
Crypto News
Institutional Investors Are Using Back Door for Crypto Buys – Bloomberg
Institutional investors are becoming more involved in the $220 billion cryptocurrency market than many observers may realize.
Fund Administrators Step Up to the Crypto Challenge – The Trade Crypto
Fund administrators have begun offering crypto services to new funds, presenting the service providers with a whole new world of challenges.
Startup Ripple Signs Up Payments Firms for Crypto-Based Platform – Reuters
Three companies that provide cross-border payment services plan to use technology developed by startup Ripple that employs cryptocurrency XRP to speed transactions.
A Crypto Exchange is Picking Off Senior Bankers as Part of Hiring Spree – eFinancialCareers
Surging crypto exchange Coinbase has already kicked off its hiring spree by poaching a long-time executive director at JP Morgan. Oputa Ezediaro started with Coinbase in September after spending his entire 11-year career at JP Morgan. He last covered credit for North American and emerging markets.
Company News
BBH Head of Currency Strategy Joins Bannonckburn – Profit & Loss
Marc Chandler has left his position as global head of currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman to join Bannonckburn Global Forex as managing partner and chief market strategist.
Northern Trust Launches Buy-Side Outsourcing Trading Service – The Trade
The service, named Integrated Trading Solutions, combines Northern Trust’s equities and fixed income trading capabilities with its access to global markets, trading venues and liquidity.
INTL FCStone Eyes Growth Where Banks Retract in Asia – Global Investor (subscription)
The US broker hopes to pick up clients as banks show “weakness” in traditional engagement model.
Under the agreement, QUICK will offer an integrated solution to their clients combining QUICK market data with kACE Analytics for FX and interest rate products.
Euroclear Connects to Fed Settlement System – Global Investor (subscription)
Euroclear’s UK and Ireland arm has begun settling US dollar trades in central bank money.
Former e-FX Head Joins Blockchain Firm in Hong Kong – Profit & Loss
Michael Ng has joined Kenetic as a senior trader, responsible for building out the firm’s OTC trading and markets business, as well as risk management solutions for cryptoassets.
Market Savvy
Euro Slides after Italian Lawmaker Mentions Return to Own Currency – Reuters
The euro fell towards a five-week low on Tuesday after a senior official from Italy’s ruling party said most of the country’s problems would be resolved if it scrapped the euro for its own currency.
Dollar Gains as Focus Moves from Nafta to US-China Tensions – Financial Times (subscription)
The dollar kicked off European trading on Tuesday with marked gains against most of its peers as attention shifted from the recently agreed Nafta revamp and on to unresolved US-China trade tensions.