Infrastructure
Post trade flavour of the month
LONDON AND ZURICH – Post trade services were the flavour of the month in October with both Reuters and UBS getting in on the action.
Citi shuts down Nordic offices
SCANDINAVIA – FX Week revealed Citigroup was to close FX sales operations in the Nordic region with branches in Copenhagen, Helsinki, Stockholm and Oslo to be shut.
CLS targets buy-side build-up
NEW YORK AND ZURICH – July saw CLS looking to expand into non-deliverable forwards (NDFs) and OTC options – a move that would pave the way for far greater buy-side participation on the settlement system.
Banks boost online options offerings
LONDON AND NEW YORK – Banks were busy building up their online capabilities in December with a number of players seeking to move emerging markets options online.
News in brief
CLS to cut prices
Deutsche boosts prime brokerage
LONDON – Deutsche Bank upped the ante for prime brokerage providers by extending its offering with the introduction of options, non-deliverable forwards (NDFs) and increased processing capabilities.
Preparing for Korean won under-performance in 2006
Standard Chartered’s economics and FX strategy team suggest ways to position for a weaker Korean won in 2006
Bloomberg on the Wire
NEW YORK – Bloomberg is providing straight-through pro-cessing of swaps by linking its multi-dealer swaps trading platform to SwapsWire, an industry-backed electronic processing platform for over-the-counter derivatives.
Enigma – a cracking good model
Pete Eggleston, head of quant solutions at the Royal Bank of Scotland, financial markets, in London, discusses systematic trading of FX implied volatility using the 'Enigma' model
NYSE launches euro-linked shares
NEW YORK – The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) last week launched shares linked to the euro, demonstrating the growing demand for exchange-traded currency products.
Causeway selects Misys Treasury Plus
LONDON AND NEW YORK – Causeway Capital Management (Causeway) has chosen vendor Misys Banking Systems (Misys) for increased efficiencies in the confirmation and settlement processes for money market and other financial instrument transactions.
M&G to sign with FX Connect
LONDON – M&G is set to sign up with FX Connect in the early part of next year, as it looks to take its FX transactions onto an electronic basis.
Travelex targets Aussie corps
MELBOURNE – Global forex specialist Travelex is set to target companies in Australia with the launch there of an online system early next year.
Emerging markets options go online
LONDON – Banks are building up online capabilities for emerging market currency options as the market for the products continues to expand.
Time to get with the program
Banks are having to move rapidly to develop their platforms just to stand still. They have been launching new products onto platforms to meet demand from customers looking to do business in new ways, as shown by the increasing number of banks trading…
Deutsche rolls out new version of autobahnFX
LONDON – Deutsche Bank has released an upgraded version of its platform autobahnFX that provides users with greater configurability for pricing.
India to liberalise forex regulations
NEW DELHI – The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) looks set to liberalise rules governing forex transactions, cutting the red tape that limits the public's ability to buy and sell currency.
The passport option
Jeffrey Todd Lins, Director, Quantitative Analysis At Saxo Bank In Copenhagen, Suggests Passport Options As A Way To Maximise A Longer-Term View During Non-Trending Periods
New structure for RBS FXCM fined by NFA
NEW YORK – Futures commission merchant FXCM has been fined by the National Futures Association (NFA) for distributing misleading promotional material.
Casting a wider net
Olaf Ransome, head of product development & support transaction services & solutions, Credit Suisse in Zurich, advocates that CLS should diversify into emerging currencies sooner rather than later
CLS to cut prices for largest users
LONDON – CLS is set to introduce a new pricing structure next year to reward banks for settling more transactions through the system.
Orchard leaves CSFB
NEW YORK – Nick Orchard, director in treasury operations at Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) in New York, has left the bank. Orchard, who left on November 30, spent 10 years at the bank, serving in Moscow, Zurich and New York.
Swiss e-swaps from ABN Amro
LONDON AND ZURICH – Dutch bank ABN Amro last week launched electronic trading in Swiss franc-denominated interest rate swaps (IRS), moving it across from the previous voice-only service.
Tullett Prebon enters China
SHANGHAI - Interdealer broker Tullett Prebon is boosting its presence in the Chinese market by establishing a joint venture broking business with Shanghai International Trust and Investment Corporation.