Tech and data
Dollar still top currency for central banks
LONDON – Market speculation that central banks began rebalancing their reserves away from the dollar last year was misled, according to the Bank for International Settlements’ (BIS) annual report released last week.
DrKW adds TraderMade to Piranha
LONDON – Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein (DrKW) has added UK vendor TraderMade’s real-time charting to its online FX trading platform Piranha.
EBS makes spot sterling drive
LONDON – Spot broker EBS last week made a bid for market-share in the sterling market – the acknowledged gap in its coverage of major currencies.
eSpeed files patent suit
NEW YORK – eSpeed attempted to deal arch rival Icap a crushing blow last week by filing a suit in a US court accusing Icap’s newly acquired BrokerTec inter-dealer bond platform of infringing upon its ‘automated auction protocol processor’ patent.
Treasury management systems’ lack of STP may stall uptake
NEW YORK – Lack of straight-through processing (STP) ability may have slowed the uptake of FX and treasury management systems (TMSs), according to a report made public last week.
EasyScreen adds FX trading with SEB streaming prices
LONDON – London-based trading software vendor EasyScreen will add FX trading to its Data Centre trading platform over the coming months, using streaming prices from the London-based merchant banking division of Swedish bank SEB.
Rupee options launch today
MUMBAI – Banks in India can start trading rupee/foreign currency options today, following the lifting of restrictions from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
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…
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).
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.
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.
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.
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.
Fairex opens Japan data centre
SINGAPORE -- Singapore-based e-trading technology company Fairex International Financial Systems has opened a data centre in Japan, and plans further expansion into the Japanese market, a senior official told FX Week .
Banks take tighter control of liquidity management post CLS
LONDON -- The Continuous Linked Settlement Service (CLS) is affecting liquidity management processes, with many settlement members taking tighter control of their payment procedures, senior bank officials told FX Week .
FX Online Japan grows
TOKYO -- FX Online Japan has signed up 35 customers to use its internet-based retail FX trading system, since the company launched in April. James Gow, managing director and co-founder of the firm, told FX Week that he expected to "pick up around 20…
JPMC demos new risk tool
BOSTON -- JP Morgan Chase last week demonstrated its new risk management service, MorganRisk, at FX Week sister publication Risk magazine's ninth annual Risk USA conference in Boston.
Twist issues commercial payments requirements
LONDON -- Integration standards body Twist (the Treasury Workstation Integration Standards Team) has issued requirements for a range of XML-based messages to automate commercial payments processing for banks and their clients.