Why ECB Action is Likely to Stoke Global Currency Wars – Financial Times

globalFXsource0

Top Headlines

Why ECB Action is Likely to Stoke Global Currency Wars – Financial Times (subscription)
Although Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank, denied it was a target, the weakening euro currency could prove the most effective channel through which QE reaches the real economy.

Euro At New 11-Year Low After ECB Action – Financial Times (subscription)
The euro is slumping to its weakest in 11 years, Bund yields are crumbling to record lows and equities are on the front foot as traders continue to absorb the launch of quantitative easing in Europe.

Ex-Citi FX Head to Launch $500 Million Hedge Fund – Reuters
Former global head of foreign exchange at Citi, Anil Prasad, is preparing to launch his own macro hedge fund in early April with initial start-up capital of at least $500 million, three sources familiar with the matter said.

Oanda Has Submitted a Bid to Acquire Alpari UK – Forex Magnates
Toronto headquartered veteran forex broker Oanda has submitted a bid of acquisition of ailing UK broker Alpari

The FX Crisis: Dealing With Human Risk and Restoring Trust Within the FX Markets – Profit & Loss Webinar (free)
As the financial services industry looks to recover from the recent FX crisis and restore trust within the FX markets, banking executives are under pressure to fully understand the risks inherent within their organisation. Beyond market, credit and trading risk – human risk is quickly becoming the single largest exposure that financial institutions are facing today.

FXPA News: Join by Feb 1 to Qualify for Time-Limited Membership Category
The special founding member category of the Foreign Exchange Professionals Association (FXPA) will close on 1 February. Join today to be part of the first wave of founding members that enjoy the distinct benefits that this class offers. FXPA recently crossed the critical threshold of 15 members, triggering elections for the first permanent Board of Directors and Officers. FXPA’s Board will include 50% representation by Founding Members that join prior to the 1 February deadline.

 

 

Regulatory News

France, Austria Push to Break Deadlock on Transactions Tax – Reuters
France and Austria sought on Thursday to break deadlocked talks with nine other European countries over a financial transaction tax, by proposing that it be applied to a wide range of transactions but at low rates from next year.

CFTC Grants SGX US Futures Clients Direct Access – Reuters
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Thursday granted the Singapore Exchange the right to provide clients located in the United States direct access to its derivatives trading platform. Separately, the CFTC said it had issued a similar order for Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Berhad.

CFTC Official Tied to Wall Street Profits from Merger Fight – Chicago Tribuune
In moving from the private sector to government, the newest Republican member of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has acquired potential conflicts that ethics lawyers say could force him to stay away from matters involving major companies regulated by the agency. J. Christopher Giancarlo joined the CFTC in June after working at a derivatives brokerage and serving as chairman of an industry lobbying group.

FCA Hits First Individuals with Libor Fines – Financial Times (subscription)
The UK financial watchdog has fined and banned the former chief executive and former chief compliance officer of interdealer broker RP Martin in its first penalties for named individuals over the Libor scandal.

 

 

Company News

Commerzbank to Cut 100, Move 340 London Jobs – Reuters
Commerzbank plans to cut or relocate around 440 London jobs in investment banking and back office technology to Frankfurt and other cities to reduce costs. Germany’s second-largest bank hopes to move around 80 front-office positions from its investment bank, including currency and bond traders, to its headquarters in Frankfurt.

Three Quarters of InteractiveBrokers’ Franc Losses from FX Futures, Not Spot FX – Forex Magnates
One of the surprising reveals from InteractiveBrokers’ CEO Thomas Peterffy, was that of the $120 million in negative balance losses, 75% of it was attributed to forex futures, specifically EUR/CHF futures trading.

Russell and Integral Launch RFX Network – Profit & Loss (subscription)
Russell Investments and Integral Development Corp have announced the launch of Russell FX Network, a new solution targeted at the buy side for netting, execution and allocation of FX transactions

Bidding Battle for GFI Group Intensifies – Profit & Loss (subscription)
The bidding battle between CME Group and BGC Partners to acquire global inter-dealer broker GFI Group intensified further this week

 

 

Market Savvy  

Emerging Markets, Currencies Look Ripe to Short Sell
Bloomberg Poll
Emerging market stocks and currencies are luring global investors for all the wrong reasons right now. A quarterly Bloomberg Global Poll showed there was a two-fold surge in the number of respondents who identified developing-nation equities and currencies as the assets they’d most like to bet against.

 

 

Press Releases

Thomson Reuters FX volumes, December 2014
Total average daily volume of FX trading across Thomson Reuters’ platforms in December 2014 totalled $350 billion – an on-year rise of 9%. This total reflects trading volumes on Thomson Reuters Matching and FXall in all transaction types, including spot, forwards, swaps, options and non-deliverable forwards. Average daily volume for spot trading in December 2014 was $106 billion.

Liquidnet Reimagines the Way the Buyside Trades with Launch of Liquidnet 5
Liquidnet, the global institutional trading network, has launched Liquidnet 5, a buy side platform that delivers safe and actionable liquidity alongside optimised analytics and advanced execution tools through one customisable interface.

 

 

Industry Events