Top Headlines
Sterling Slips on Construction Data But Still in Best Run Since 2012 – Reuters
Sterling slipped, hit by weak data from Britain’s construction sector, but was nevertheless on track for its seventh straight week of gains against the dollar – the pound’s best run since 2012.
Euro Holds Near Three-Year Highs as Rising Yields Fail to Lift Dollar – Reuters
The euro held above $1.25, continuing a strong week in which rising US treasury yields failed to lift the dollar while the euro zone’s economic revival and expectations of monetary tightening made the single currency more attractive.
‘The Euro Area Needs Reform’, Says ECB’s Cœuré – Financial Times (subscription)
The European Central Bank must not become complacent about its ability to withstand future shocks, executive board member Benoît Cœuré warned.
UBS: Dollar Is Still ‘Expensive’ – Financial Times (subscription)
UBS has cut its year-end forecasts for the US dollar, telling investors that the greenback still does not look alluring even as it has tumbled over the past year.
Renminbi Rally Keeps Rattling On – Financial Times (subscription)
The renminbi hit a fresh high against the dollar, while the buck’s weakness has prompted a series of hefty forecast revisions by analysts now predicting a stronger Chinese currency for the rest of the year.
Asian Currencies Still Cheap in Real Terms, Analysts Say – Reuters
Asian currencies are cheap in historical trade-weighted terms despite a steady rise to multi-year highs over the past year on broad US dollar weakness and strong flows into the region, analysts say.
Deutsche Bank to Pay $70m to Settle US Rate-Rigging Probe – Financial Times (subscription)
Deutsche Bank will pay $70m to settle charges from US derivatives regulators that its traders tried to rig a crucial benchmark in the $300tn interest-rate swaps market.
Deutsche Bank Sees Contagion Risk Growing in Financial Markets – Bloomberg
That’s the warning in new research from Deutsche Bank strategist Binky Chadha, which found everything from equities to bonds, oil and currencies are moving in unison to a degree rarely seen during this market cycle.
Europe Won’t Need London Finance, France Says – Bloomberg
European companies will do just fine with reduced access to London’s financial markets after the UK leaves the European Union, France says, dismissing suggestions they may suffer.
Michael Spencer Favours Brexit Rollback of ‘Over-Engineered’ Mifid II – Financial News
Michael Spencer, the City grandee and chief executive of NEX Group, would be in favour of “peeling back” elements of new European Union trading rules following the UK’s exit from the bloc.
CME Takes Cautious Stance Toward Crypto-Futures Besides Bitcoin – Bloomberg
CME Group doesn’t plan to offer futures based on cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin any time soon, in contrast to rival Cboe Global Markets’ openness to the idea.
- Cybercriminals Target Booming Cryptocurrencies: Report – Reuters
- Nobody Puts Bitcoin in the Corner – Financial Times (subscription)
Blackstone Sees Data, Not Desktop Products, As Future of Thomson Reuters F&R Unit – Reuters
Blackstone Group President Tony James said the future of the Thomson Reuters Financial and Risk business is in selling data, not in selling terminal desktop products to traders, bankers and investors.
Regulatory News
CFTC Announces New IRS Market Measurement – Profit & Loss
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chairman, Christopher Giancarlo, has released a new paradigm for measuring the size of the global swaps markets.
Industry Bodies Publish IBOR-Replacement Roadmap – Markets Media
The analysis focuses on key IBORs in five currencies: euro, sterling, Swiss franc, US dollar and yen.
Financial Conduct Authority Names Brexit Head – Financial News
The Financial Conduct Authority has appointed a former lawyer to guide it through the UK’s exit from the European Union and set the agenda for its post-Brexit future.
Wall Street Faces Fed Stress Tests That Assume Another Meltdown – Bloomberg
Wall Street banks must prove they are able to weather a serious global recession as part of an annual Federal Reserve exercise meant to ensure the biggest lenders won’t collapse in a new crisis.
MFA: Regulators Should Destroy Used Hedge Fund Data – HFM Week (subscription)
Trade body calls for four new principles to beef up cyber defences.
Japan’s Regulator Urged Coincheck to Fix Flaws Before $530 Million Cyber Theft – Reuters
Japan’s financial regulator swooped on Coincheck with surprise checks of its systems and said it had asked the Tokyo-based cryptocurrency exchange to fix flaws in its computer networks well before hackers stole $530 million of digital money last week.
Company News
FXSpotStream Reports Record High ADV in January – Profit & Loss
FXSpotStream has become the latest platform to announce a new high for monthly average daily volume (ADV) on its platform in January, hitting $26.34 billion in ADV.
Isda’s O’Malia: Back-Office Costs Are ‘Killing’ Swap Dealers – Risk (subscription)
Banks set to begin testing Isda’s common domain model for trade lifecycle processes.
LMAX Consolidates Ownership with £21.9m Buyout – Profit & Loss
LMAX Exchange (Lmax) has completed an equity purchase of Paddy Power Betfair’s remaining stake in the business.
TCA Will Increase Fragmentation, Says Sinclair – FX Week (subscription)
The use of execution analytics together with automated trading will further increase fragmentation in currency markets as algorithms seek out brokers and platforms where signalling risk is the lowest, resulting in more orders being placed on secondary venues, according to a white paper by MarketFactory.
FlexTrade Hires Alves – Profit & Loss
FlexTrade Systems has appointed Paul Alves as senior vice president, global FX business development, with a focus on expanding the company’s buy side trading solutions to asset managers.
Market Savvy
Mexican Peso Shoots Higher, Leads Gains Against Dollar – Financial Times (subscription)
The Mexican peso is flexing its muscle in a big way, rallying as much as 1.4 per cent to make itself the best performing major currency against the dollar in midday trading.
Australian Dollar Edges Lower as Analysts See More Pain Ahead – Financial Times (subscription)
The Australian dollar edged lower and analysts are wary the currency’s hot start to the year is turning cold.
Bolívar Rallies After Venezuela Unifies Exchange Rates – Financial Times (subscription)
The Venezuelan bolívar has staged a rare rally against the dollar on the black market after the government announced it would unify its two official currency rates in what appears to be the most significant change to the foreign exchange system in eight years.