Top Headlines
Swiss Franc Antics Threaten Banks’ Grip on Currency Trading – Bloomberg
The grip of the world’s biggest banks on the $5.3-trillion-a-day currency market is under attack. After the Swiss National Bank stunned the world in January by abandoning its price cap on the franc, some banks sought to reduce their losses by trying to renege on transactions. Dealers including Bank of America, Barclays and Goldman Sachs approached customers about changing some trades, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Bloomberg Terminal Outage Result of Network Failure – Profit & Loss (free story)
Bloomberg terminals around the globe crashed Friday morning, with the outage affecting the close of trading in Hong Kong and the London open.
Draghi Warning Unheeded as Euro’s Best Streak in a Year Stalls – Bloomberg
The euro’s longest winning streak in a year stalled Monday as regional leaders wrangled with a defiant Greece over how to avoid a default. Draghi said in Washington Saturday that while the situation is “urgent”, it’s premature to speculate about a Greek exit from the currency union.
Regulators Need to Differentiate Between Retail and Institutional FX – Profit & Loss (subscription)
Of all the outcomes the FX industry may face in the coming months as the world continues to digest the fallout from 15 January, I hope one of them will be the re-separation of retail and institutional – because the FX industry needs to distance itself at this crucial time from what is, in reputational terms, the toxic offspring that retail represents.
Aussie, New Zealand Dollars Helped by China Stimulus – Reuters
The Australian and New Zealand dollars rose on Monday after China boosted banks’ lending power to support Asia’s biggest market, prodding investors globally into traditionally higher-risk currency plays.
RBA’s Stevens Fights a Resurgent Carry Trade in the Aussie Dollar – Sydney Morning Herald
Add a resurgent carry trade to the list of things keeping Reserve Bank Governor Glenn Stevens from getting a weaker Aussie dollar. A widening yield advantage on the nation’s debt amid a drop in currency volatility is luring investors back to the strategy.
IMF’s Review on Inclusion of RMB in SDR Basket Underway – Xinhua.net
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is conducting a comprehensive assessment over the Chinese currency, or RMB, in its special drawing right (SDR) review to decide whether the currency will be included in the SDR currency basket or not, Zhu Min, deputy managing director of the IMF.
Non-Chinese Companies Warm to Renminbi – Financial Times (subscription)
Non-Chinese companies are increasingly using the renminbi as an international currency and expect to more than double the volume of transactions in the next five years, despite several obstacles, according to research.
KPMG Finds Most Alpari UK EUR/CHF Trades Were Correctly Priced – Profit & Loss (free story)
The administrators for bankrupt Alpari UK, KPMG, have determined that all EUR/CHF transactions executed on 15 January after the removal of the ceiling by the Swiss National Bank were “within the parameters of the client agreement and in accordance with regulatory requirements”. |