Regulation
US banks report profits down in third quarter
NEW YORK & CHARLOTTE, N CAROLINA – Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America released positive earnings reports for the third quarter, but all failed to profit from their FX businesses.
Fimat opens banking branch in Hong Kong
HONG KONG – Brokerage firm Fimat International Banque opened a bank branch in Hong Kong last week, which will act as a regional hub for the firm.
Banks are ignoring Mifid threat, says Celent
BRUSSELS – The forex industry will be beset by law suits and regulatory action if it continues to ignore the Mifid directive coming into force next year, according to a research consultancy.
How to play gravity-defying USD/JPY
Peter Luxton, Global Markets Adviser and Shant Movsesian, Senior Options Analyst at Informa Global Markets advise taking dollar bulls into account when trading on potential weakness
Banca Aletti takes Risque approach
PARIS – Banca Aletti is going live with technology vendor Sophis' Risque front- to back-office system for its FX derivatives business.
UK business unprepared for hedging changes
LONDON – Medium-sized UK companies are unprepared for forthcoming rule changes on accounting standards that require more rigorous reporting of FX exposure, according to forex specialist HiFX.
'Boiler room' retail FX fraudsters face US court for high-pressure techniques
NEW YORK – The retail foreign exchange market suffered another blow at the end of last month, as 11 men were indicted by a US court on charges of ‘boiler room’ fraud.
BIS: debt now bigger problem than inflation
BASEL – The main structural threat to global economic growth is no longer runaway inflation, but a slower rebalancing of excess debt, according to a working paper released by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
BarCap joins algo bandwagon
LONDON – Barclays Capital (BarCap) has joined a select group of banks that has started offering algorithmic trading for forex over their single-bank platforms.
More fraud uncovered by CFTC
WASHINGTON, DC – The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has settled a forex fraud action resulting in over $2.5 million in civil penalties.
Turnover continues at RBS in sales and structuring
LONDON & GREENWICH – Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has seen two changes in sales and structuring in London, with one hire and a departure.
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).
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.
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.
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.
FXpress enhances web treasury product
BALA CYNWYD, PENNSYLVANIA – FXpress Corporation, the treasury solutions provider, has released First S6, the latest version of its web-based treasury software for corporations worldwide.
FX options fraudsters fined $25 million
WASHINGTON DC – A Florida court has imposed more than $25 million in sanctions against Florida-based United Investors Group (UIG), in an FX options and energy fraud case.
Chinese officials trained by CFTC
BEIJING – Chinese regulators last week hosted a delegation from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to help it set up a regulatory regime for futures trading.
Watch out for those retail risks
This week sees yet another tale of greed and unscrupulous behaviour, with two Miami residents being fined millions of dollars by the CFTC for foreign exchange fraud.
Strong second quarter for US banks
NEW YORK – US banks have posted strong results for the second quarter, with many attributing growing revenues to the FX business.
Further fines for fraudsters
WASHINGTON, DC – Two Miami residents have been ordered to pay a total of $8.9 million following an FX fraud action brought by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
WestLB builds in structuring
DUSSELDORF – WestLB has increased its FX and interest rate structuring business in London to meet demand from German savings bank clients.
CME takes Swapstream for $15m
CHICAGO – The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) is acquiring multi-dealer interest rate swaps trading platform Swapstream for $15 million.
BoA launches streaming FX options
NEW YORK – Bank of America has launched streaming options on its FXtransact web-based platform.