Foreign exchange
PFG Forex partners with Currenex
CHICAGO – Brokerage firm Peregrine Financial Group (PFG) is giving online forex trading customers access to Currenex FX market liquidity via a partnership with the technology vendor to be announced tomorrow (September 5).
How Saxo gained the Midas touch
Lars Seier Christensen and Kim Fournais have seen their business plan unfold since 1992 from FX broking boutique to billion dollar internet bank, reports Rob Shepherd
Thomson expands FX offering with Tullett
LONDON – Thomson Financial last week introduced foreign exchange and money market pricing pages with content from Tullett Prebon Information (TPI).
Standard Chartered adds fair-value model for yen
TOKYO – Standard Chartered last week introduced a fair-value model for the yen to take into account the growing interest in the Japanese currency.
Saxo Bank upgrades options trading platform
COPENHAGEN – Danish firm Saxo Bank has enhanced its SaxoTrader 2 platform to offer live streaming prices on options in all major currency crosses.
CFTC fines SA resident for forex fraud
WASHINGTON, DC – A New York court has fined a South African resident over $1 million for FX fraud, in an action brought by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Trader Tools to offer ASP for wider access
NEW YORK – Trader Tools is set to launch an application service provider (ASP) product targeted at mid-tier banks to enable a wider range of institutions to access the vendor’s FX technology.
Further boost for Wachovia
HONG KONG – Wachovia has poached two forex sales personnel from Standard Chartered in Singapore and Hong Kong, as it continues to increase its presence in Asia.
IFX launches multi-manager fund
LONDON – IFX Capital Markets, part of IFX Group, has launched a currency multi-manager portfolio targeted at retail and institutional customers.
UBS maintains results trend
ZURICH & BASEL – UBS has continued the trend of strong FX results posted by US and European banks with record results for the second quarter.
Management changes at top banks
GLOBAL – It has been a week of senior management movement at two top banks, with Deutsche and Standard Chartered seeing changes to their line-ups.
Anonymity does not always equal profitability
FXall has jumped on the anonymity bandwagon, and the Reuters/CME venture offers another way to access liquidity discretely. But whether these ventures will succeed is debatable.
Travelex makes first foray into Austria
EUROPE – Travelex, the FX specialist, has acquired the overseas business of ReiseBank for e3.4 million.
Shock departure from Hotspot FX
JERSEY CITY, NJ – The surprise departure of John Eley, president and chief executive officer of electronic communications network (ECN) Hotspot FX last week has puzzled industry participants.
Commerz hires trading trio
FRANKFURT – Commerzbank Corporates & Markets (CBCM) has boosted its Frankfurt-based forex trading desk with three new hires in over-the-counter options and warrants trading.
Automating FX – algorithmic trading in foreign exchange
Interest in algorithmic trading in FX is growing. John Bates, vice-president, Apama Products, Progress Software, discusses the advantages, and analyses the latest market innovations
Forex trader faces possible execution
HANOI – A bank employee faces possible execution in Vietnam after the bank lost some $5.4 million in allegedly unauthorised prop trading.
Pension funds should increase FX exposure – Deutsche Bank
LONDON – Pension funds should substantially increase their exposure to forex in order to increase returns and decrease volatility of returns, according to research from Deutsche Bank released last week.
MarketSpace gears up for launch
CHICAGO & NEW YORK – FXMarketSpace, the CME/Reuters joint venture, is set to reveal its offering with a prototype graphical user interface (GUI) to be released later this month as it makes its first hires.
COESfx fined over fraud
WASHINGTON, DC – Two more cases of forex fraud were revealed last week, with US FX platform COESfx fined for misleading customers who suffered heavy trading losses.
Trading in the firing line holds back banks
The prospect of facing a firing squad for losing some of the bank’s money would certainly concentrate the minds of the more adventurous prop traders.
Gladwin starts in top FX role at Lehman
LONDON – Richard Gladwin started in his role as global head of foreign exchange at Lehman Brothers last Monday (July 31).
BoA adds to London staff
LONDON – Bank of America (BoA) has made a number of hires in London as it continues to expand its forex capabilities in the City.
Calypso launches middle-office tool
SAN FRANCISCO – Calypso, the US technology vendor, has launched Calypso Enterprise Risk Service (ERS), middle-office risk software for FX and other asset classes.