Top Headlines

Refinitiv Cuts 2,000 Jobs after Blackstone Takeover – Financial News (subscription)

Refinitiv, the financial data and trading company, is in the process of cutting around 2,000 jobs after its takeover by Blackstone, the large private equity group. The group is looking to strip out $650m of costs in a bid to reshape and compete better with rival Bloomberg amid a growing demand for data from banks and fund managers.

Disorderly Brexit Will Be Worse Than Financial Crisis, Bank of England Warns – Financial News (subscription)

The Bank of England has warned that a “disorderly” crash-out Brexit could cause more damage to the UK economy than the globalfinancial crisis.

More Trading Will Be ‘Taken Over by Machines,’ Quant Chief Says – Bloomberg 

Quantitative trading is on the march and machines are likely to handle a much greater share of dealing in assets in the years to come, diluting or replacing the role now played by human beings, according to Scott Kerson, head of systematic strategies at Gresham Investment Management.

Regulatory News

EU Watchdogs Propose No-Deal Brexit Waivers for Derivatives – Reuters

The European Union’s three financial watchdogs have proposed a limited waiver from posting margins on uncleared derivatives transactions to minimize market disruption if Britain leaves the bloc next March without a deal.

Get Ready for a Derivatives Trading Meltdown Next Autumn – Financial News (subscription)

The cost of derivatives trading in Europe is set for a financially crippling 10-fold increase under new regulation.

FIA Issues Updated CCP Risk Management Recommendations – Futures Industry Association

FIA has published a series of recommendations to improve clearinghouse risk management following recent market developments. The paper is an update to a 2015 series of recommendations.

‘Populist Thirst’ Is Outing More Bad Bankers, Citi Lawyer Says – Bloomberg

Regulators are increasingly penalizing individual bankers when investigating misconduct at their firms, according to senior lawyers at Citigroup and the Federal Reserve.

Primer: How Asia is Preparing for the End of Libor – International Financial Law Review

To ensure that rates in interlinked transactions are based on similar frameworks, there needs to be alternatives that work across all transactions.

Crypto News 

Crypto and FX: More Alike Than We Think? – Profit & Loss

FX industry veteran and Profit & Loss 2012 Hall of Fame inductee, David Ogg, reflects on how the rapidly evolving crypto markets resemble the FX markets of the past.

10 Firms Join to Create Code of Conduct for Digital Asset Markets – Profit & Loss

Ten financial services and technology firms leading developments in the digital asset and blockchain space have joined together to create the Association for Digital Asset Markets to establish a Code of Conduct for emerging digital asset markets.

Mike Novogratz’s Crypto Trading Desk Lost $136 Million in Nine Months – Bloomberg

The bad year for traders at Mike Novogratz’s cryptocurrency merchant bank got even worse in the third quarter – and that was before the market fell out of bed this month.

Bitcoin and Digital Assets Are Here to Stay, Says NYSE Chairman, Despite Bear Market –CNBC

Jeff Sprecher, chairman of the New York Stock Exchange and CEO of its parent company, Intercontinental Exchange, said that despite headlines of cryptocurrencies flopping, digital assets have a future in regulated markets.

Corners of Wall Street Remain Undeterred By Crypto Crash – Financial Times (subscription)

Mainstream finance is experimenting with digital tokens despite bitcoin tumble.

LabCFTC Releases Smart Contracts Primer – Profit & Loss

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s LabCFTC has released, “A CFTC Primer on Smart Contracts”. The primer is part of LabCFTC’s effort to engage withinnovators and market participants on a range of fintech topics, and followson from a 2017 primer on virtual currencies. 

Company News 

P&L Talk Series with Nomura’s Ian Daniels – Profit & Loss

Ian Daniels, executive director, head of e-FX distribution, EMEA, at Nomura, talks about algorithmic trading trends in the FX market.

Morgan Stanley Invests $15 Million in Integral – FXWeek (subscription)

The cash injection enables Integral to pursue platform expansion across a broader set of currency participants.

Ex-Credit Suisse Trading Boss Named Head of World Gold Council – Financial News (subscription)

David Tait, the former global head of Credit Suisse’s macro trading business, is set to become chief executive of the World GoldCouncil early next year.

Deutsche Bank Mulls Shake-Up as Regulatory Frustrations Continue – Bloomberg

Germany’s largest lender is replacing senior executives in the US and is considering changing staff who tend its relationships with regulators. The moves come on the heels of strong cuts to the US operations andafter authorities in the country – and in Europe – expressed frustration withthe firm’s efforts to prevent financial crime.

Bloomberg Makes its Real-Time B-PIPE Data Feed Available on AWS – The Desk

Bloomberg’s flagship real-time market data feed, B-PIPE, has been made available on the cloud via Amazon Web Services, giving clients access to the same consolidated, normalised market data available through the Bloomberg Terminal.

Market Savvy 

Sterling Slides as UK Brexit Vote Clouds Outlook – Reuters

The pound sank on Thursday amid concerns about the UK parliament’s vote on Brexit and after the Bank of England warned of risks to the currency if Britain leaves the European Union in a disorderedly manner.

Dollar Recovers as G20 Caution Sets In – Reuters

The dollar recovered against its rivals on Thursday as caution before a G20 meeting prompted investors to buy back the currency after comments by the Federal Reserve chief were seen as a sign that a rising trend in US rates may be coming to a close.

Yuan Faces a 10% Tumble With Trade War Set to Worsen, BNY Says – Bloomberg

The US and China trade war is bound to worsen, sending the yuan slumping past 7 per dollar for the first time in a decade, according to BNY Mellon Investment Management.

Two of Asia’s Worst Currencies Set for Best Monthly Run in Years – Bloomberg

The Indian rupee and the Indonesian rupiah, two of the worst performers in Asia, are fast narrowing their losses, and policy makers have gone from backstopping a rout to cheering the gains.

Mnuchin Asked About Fed Option That Could Avoid Rate Hikes – Bloomberg

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin privately asked bond dealers and investors in October whether they want the Federal Reserve to tighten monetary policy by raising interest rates or through faster cuts in its securities portfolio.