News
Fed cut boosts dollar, but doubts remain
WASHINGTON, DC -- The Federal Reserve’s 25 basis point interest rate cut last week did little to excite the FX markets, and analysts said the US currency could be entering a period of consolidation.
Bloomberg to launch new instant messaging service
NEW YORK -- US information and trading technology firm Bloomberg is launching an instant messaging service in July, in a bid to retain customers. The service, called Instant Bloomberg, is in addition to the widely used Bloomberg Messaging service but has…
US investment banks’ revenues soar on back of investor demand
NEW YORK -- Strong investor demand is driving US investment banks’ fixed-income and forex revenues sky-high, according to first-half results released last week.
AIGforex under merger threat
GREENWICH, CT -- AIG Trading’s FX group faces an uncertain future as parent company Connecticut-based American Insurance Group (AIG) prepares to merge its AIG Trading and AIG Financial Products subsidiaries, sources close to the firm told FX Week .
UBS looks to the East
BEIJING -- UBS is looking to mainland China as a potential source for new FX customers, and may hire staff in the region to service that sector. The international bank expects to be granted a full banking licence for its representative office in Beijing…
Saxo secures Deutsche funding
COPENHAGEN -- Deutsche Bank has placed e10 million in subordinated loan capital with Danish FX dealer Saxo Bank. The investment doubles Saxo Bank’s combined share capital and subordinated capitals, bringing it to about Dkr145 million ($22 million).
Banks make headway on IAS 39 macro hedging
LONDON -- The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has proposed a new solution to macro hedging for European banks that will adopt the new IAS 39 accounting standards in January 2005.
FleetBoston selects HSBC for CLS
BOSTON -- HSBC last week started processing continuous linked settlement (CLS) trades for FleetBoston Financial, following the Boston-based bank’s selection of HSBC as its CLS settlement member.
US investment banks’ revenues soar on back of investor demand
NEW YORK -- Strong investor demand is driving US investment banks’ fixed-income and forex revenues sky-high, according to first-half results released last week.
Brazilian real rally set to come to an end
SAO PAULO -- The Brazilian real strengthened after the US Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates on Wednesday (June 25), but was back on the defensive over Brazil’s debt and is likely to remain on the back foot.
Philip Green leaves Reuters
LONDON -- Philip Green, chief operating officer of Reuters, has left the firm, and his position has been eliminated.
HSBC upgrades turrets in HK
HONG KONG -- HSBC has gone live with a £1 million upgrade of its Syntegra turrets for about 250 foreign exchange, money markets and derivative traders at the bank’s main Hong Kong site.
Fenics FX helps GFI in Asia
SINGAPORE -- Options pricing tool Fenics FX continues to support the expansion of its parent company, interdealer broker GFI in Asia, according to a senior official at the firm.
Standard Chartered makes senior forex appointments
LONDON -- Standard Chartered Bank in London appointed a new head of global markets, UK and Europe, last week (June 16), a senior bank official told FX Week .
Rabo loses global FX head
LONDON -- Dutch Bank Rabobank is currently without a global head of foreign exchange following the departure of Gary Kaye from the London office last Monday (June 16), a spokesperson for the bank in Utrecht told FX Week .
Politics mars eastern European FX process
BUDAPEST -- Political interference in Hungary’s monetary policy decisions could ultimately damage regional currencies and derail the accession process to the eurozone, analysts told FX Week .
Wells Fargo adds to online FX
SAN FRANCISCO -- US Bank Wells Fargo (WF) has introduced a new version of its online FX service for its correspondent banks.
No change likely for ringgit/dollar peg
KUALA LUMPAR -- The Malaysian ringgit’s (MYR) peg to the US dollar is likely to remain in place, analysts in Asia told FX Week , despite mounting speculation last week that it may be relaxed ahead of Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad’s retirement…
SG launches first UK currency warrants
LONDON -- SG, the investment banking arm of Société Générale, has issued the first currency warrants in the UK. This follows the release of warrants linked to oil, gold and house price moves by Goldman Sachs, SG’s biggest rival in this area.
CMC to launch in N America
NEW YORK -- Online FX trading firm CMC Group is making a bid for North American retail forex clients with a new office in New York.
BBA launches new Libor fixings
LONDON -- The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) added two new currencies to its Libor (London Interbank Overnight Rate) fixings last week.
ECB beckons Trichet as Credit Lyonnais trial ends
PARIS -- Jean-Claude Trichet -- front-runner for the top post in European central banking -- was acquitted of false accounting last week.