News
EBS/FXMarketSpace rivalry heats up
LONDON – The standoff between newcomer FXMarketSpace and incumbent platform EBS revved up last week, with EBS claiming the former will favour Chicago-based users.
Malaysia sets up payment-versus-payment system
HONG KONG & KUALA LUMPUR – The Hong Kong Monetary Authority and Malaysia's central bank (Bank Negara Malaysia) launched a cross-border payment-versus-payment (PvP) settlement system last week.
City bonuses rise by a quarter
LONDON – Just under half of city workers expect a 25% rise in bonuses this year, according to survey results released last week.
Low volatility has affected the market, says Calyon's Lefort
LONDON – The major market event in 2006 has been low volatility, and new products have had to be developed to deal with it, said Christine Lefort, Calyon's global head of FX structuring.
Gain wins court approval to acquire Refco assets
BEDMINSTER, NEW JERSEY – Gain Capital has won bankruptcy court approval to buy the retail customer account information and marketing list of Refco F/X Associates. The deal ends six months of volatile negotiations between the two companies.
Lacklustre bonus season is forecast on low volatility
LONDON – Headhunters say FX professionals are concerned that low market volatility will mean lower bonuses, despite predictions that overall bank remuneration will be up.
China's forex reserves exceed $1 trillion
BEIJING – China's foreign exchange reserves have exceeded the $1 trillion mark, said state officials last week.
UBS triumphs as Citi bounces back
LONDON – UBS retained its top spot in this year's FX Week Best Banks Awards, as Citigroup bounced back to take second spot.
Former Goldman Sachs FX chief launches hedge fund
NEW YORK – Peter Gerhard, Goldman Sachs' former head of FX, has launched his first hedge fund with new firm East Avenue Capital Partners.
Dresdner joins EBS as prime bank amid rising volumes
LONDON – Dresdner Kleinwort has joined EBS as a prime bank, with the spot broker saying sharp increases in prime volumes demonstrate its ability to withstand challenges from new entrants.
CFTC fines Florida forex firm
WASHINGTON DC – Florida Federal Court last week ruled against foreign exchange firm G7 Advisory Services, in a $2.1 million fraud action brought by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Slovenia to join eurozone
LJUBLJANA – Slovenia is on course to join the eurozone on January 1, according to a report by the European Commission released last Friday (November 10).
Market is over-bearish on greenback – Legal & General
LONDON – The majority of the market is far too bearish on the dollar, according to UK fund manager Legal and General Investment Management.
Icap sets up Russian service
LONDON & MOSCOW – Icap last month established a rouble rates desk, as the money broker looks to build its capabilities in the rapidly expanding market.
CME expands FX options opening hours
CHICAGO – Chicago Mercantile Exchange announced it will offer side-by-side electronic and open outcry trading for the majority of its CME FX futures options from December 18.
Thailand acts to curb baht speculation
BANGKOK – The Bank of Thailand (BoT) introduced new capital controls last week aimed at clamping down on speculative baht trading.
RCP rolls out new version of Deal Web
LONDON – Technology vendor RCP Consultants this week releases the latest version of its conversational analysis and deal matching system, RCP Deal Web.
UBS triumphs as Citi bounces back
LONDON – UBS retained its top spot in this year's FX Week Best Banks Awards, as Citigroup bounced back to take second spot.
Flextrade beta-tests MilanFX system
NEW YORK – Trading technology vendor Flextrade has started beta-testing its block FX trading platform MilanFX, it told FX Week . The vendor becomes the first to roll out a block trading venue for foreign exchange and employ a dark pool of liquidity.
Top Australian banks report bumper FX profits
SYDNEY & MELBOURNE – National Australia Bank (NAB), ANZ and Westpac reported decreased overall profits in the six months ending September 30, reflecting the slower trading climate over the past few months.
Currenex develops Fix spin-off
LONDON – Currenex is launching an open standard Fix-based straight-through processing (STP) protocol for FX, money markets and precious metals this week.
CME and SGX renew their mutual agreement
CHICAGO & SINGAPORE – Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and Singapore Exchange (SGX) last Monday (October 30) renewed their mutual offset system (MOS) agreement, which allows clearing of certain products at either CME or SGX.
CFTC proposes measures to improve futures self-regulation
WASHINGTON, DC – The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has proposed measures to improve self-regulation in the futures industry.