News
SG CIB names forex line-up
LONDON & PARIS – Société Générale Corporate and Investment Banking (SG CIB) has named three managers to head its global FX business, in its fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC) division.
BarCap index fund gains traction
LONDON – The Barclays Intelligent Carry Index (ICI) fund has received "substantial interest" two weeks after launch, according to officials at the bank in London.
RBS breaks into Russian market
LONDON & MOSCOW – RBS Global Banking and Markets has signed an exclusive agreement with Russian investment bank Renaissance Capital to sell derivatives solutions in the country.
Capitalia extends SwapsWire connection
ROME – Capitalia SpA is extending its relationship with electronic dealer network, SwapsWire.
Fimat MD takes top US forex post at SGCIB
NEW YORK – Vincent Bonamy, Fimat's managing director of financial products and services for the Americas, is to become head of FX for Société Générale Corporate and Investment Bank (SG CIB) for the region.
State Street acquisition of Currenex sends shock waves
BOSTON – US bank State Street's decision to acquire FX trading platform Currenex for $564 million has sent shock waves through the industry.
CFTC to adapt rules governing futures traders
WASHINGTON DC – The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) last week said futures traders will be required to become registered members of a self-regulatory trade association from February.
ODL to upgrade platform using Dresdner technology
LONDON – FX broker ODL Securities plans to upgrade its FX trading platform by incorporating technology acquired from Dresdner Kleinwort's retail services arm last week.
Smith resurfaces at BarCap
LONDON – Barclays Capital has hired Glenn Smith to head short-dated vanilla options trading in London.
Sterling to run out of steam
LONDON – Despite excitement in the markets as sterling approaches the iconic value of $2, market analysts surveyed by FX Week are unconvinced the currency will breach that level.
Margin FX offer for Japanese traders
TOKYO – Online securities house Monex is going live this week with Monex FX Pro, an internet-delivered trading system.
4Cast back to full EM force
LONDON – Research firm 4Cast has made two new hires to bolster its emerging markets FX division.
BarCap FX chief rumoured to be Asia bound
LONDON & SINGAPORE – Ivan Ritossa, London-based global head of FX at Barclays Capital, is rumoured to be relocating to Singapore.
Traders shrug off MoFE measures
SEOUL – Traders have shrugged off new measures introduced by the South Korean government aimed at curbing rapid appreciation in the won.
CLS reports record number of one-day payment instructions
NEW YORK – CLS Bank has set a new record for the payment instructions settled in one day, with more than 700,000 transactions settled over the platform.
US banks report strength in last quarter of 2006
NEW YORK – US banks have reported a positive set of results from their currencies business for Q4 2006. The currencies business helped to push revenues higher in most of the banks, but dented the fixed-income revenues at Goldman Sachs.
Currenex builds out order types
LONDON – Currenex has released version 9.0 of its trading software, which sees the inclusion of advanced order types.
PVB goes live with Misys cross-asset system
MANILA – Philippine Veterans Bank (PVB) has gone live with cross-asset processing system Misys Opics Plus for its FX business.
Rivals are set to gain from merger of French brokers
LONDON – The announcement of a proposed merger between Société Générale's Fimat and Calyon Financial has already prompted some staff to start looking for alternative employment, say market sources.
Bear Stearns to expand in London, following global plan
LONDON – Bear Stearns is to grow its London-based FX business in line with the bank's wider growth plans, that could see it as much as triple its current staffing levels in the city.
Parker Global launches investable forex index
STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT – Investment consultant Parker Global Strategies (PGS) has launched PGS FX Alpha Edge, an investable foreign exchange index.
HKEx to launch renminbi futures by middle of year
HONG KONG – Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEx) plans to introduce renminbi futures by the middle of this year, according to Lawrence Fok, head of the exchange's business development division.
FXMarketSpace to spur consolidation
WESTBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – FXMarketSpace will facilitate consolidation in e-FX, according to Robert Iati, partner at research and advisory company TABB Group.