News
ODL Securities to expand into FX
LONDON -- ODL Securities Limited (ODL), a London-based derivatives and equities trading firm, will go live with a new e-FX system in March, a spokesperson for the firm told FX Week .
Deutsche closing gap on Citi?
FRANKFURT -- Deutsche Bank could be about to close the forex-earnings gap with rival Citigroup, if FX figures match the 33% dollar-terms improvement in its debt group, announced last week.
BoA appoints Mandell as global FX head
NEW YORK -- After months without a global head of its FX business, Bank of America has appointed veteran Christiane Mandell to the role, the bank is expected to announce today (February 9).
Lloyds TSB seeks regional corporate dealers for FX
LONDON -- Lloyds TSB is seeking corporate FX sales dealers for its regional offices across the UK, as part of an effort to increase market share, a London spokesperson told FX Week .
Banks hire for Euro corporates
LONDON -- BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank SEB and SG Corporate & Investment Bank are among the banks building European corporate FX sales teams, as clients step-up activity in response to volatile markets.
Thai baht flies high despite bird flu
BANGKOK -- Market participants remain bullish on the outlook for the Thai baht, despite the outbreak of avian influenza that has hit Thailand and other parts of Asia in recent weeks.
SG sets up investor services group
PARIS -- Société Générale has set up a new global securities services division for investors, named SG GSSI, to provide services on securities and listed derivatives covered by the group globally.
New accounting rules put focus on training
LONDON -- New accounting regulations and recent instances of suspected fraud in the forex markets should make training financial markets staff a top priority, said officials at online training firm Intuition in London.
Saxo’s FX volume growth builds profits
COPENHAGEN -- Saxo Bank had its most active trading month ever in January, with over $93 billion worth of forex trading on its platform, officials said last week. The volumes represent an increase of over 200% since January 2003, when volumes were $28.5…
IASB to create advisory group
LONDON -- IASB, the International Accounting Standards Board, is investigating the establishment of an advisory forum, following comments from euro official Frits Bolkestein last month that standards for the treatment of derivatives are still unsuitable…
JP Morgan launches FXPrime
NEW YORK -- JP Morgan has gone live with FXPrime, an automated prime brokerage system for forex, the bank announced last week.
More NAB departures touted
MELBOURNE -- Banking analysts are expecting more departures from National Australia Bank in the wake of its forex options scandal, as chief executive Frank Cicutto resigned last week.
Korea builds utility to connect to CLS
SEOUL -- Consultancy BearingPoint has won the contract to build a utility through which Korean banks will use the continuous-linked settlement service (CLS) for FX when the Korean won goes live on the service in Q4.
Rand-weakening options running dry
LONDON -- The recent weakening of the South African rand, which dropped from 6.3128 on January 5 to 7.0649 on January 30, may be hard to sustain, as the authorities run out of options to force the currency lower, analysts warned last week.
BoA expands Euro fixed income
LONDON -- Bank of America has made four London-based hires to its European fixed-income business, the bank announced last week.
Informa completes analysis integration
LONDON -- Informa Global Markets (IGM), the new analysis firm formed through the merger of MMS International and MCM, has completed the integration of its analysis teams.
CAI, CL chiefs share top posts
PARIS -- Crédit Agricole Indosuez (CAI) and Crédit Lyonnais (CL) executives will share the management of foreign exchange after the two banks’ merger on April 30, it emerged last week.
Resona opts for Reuters’ FX platform
TOKYO -- Resona Bank expects go live with an FX-dealing internet platform hosted by Reuters in April. The Japanese bank has selected Reuters Electronic Trading for Automated Dealing (Retad) as the foundation for the platform, which will be aimed at…
ACI reaffirms manager liability for fraud
LONDON -- Ultimate responsibility for misdemeanours on the trading floor rests with senior management, forex industry body ACI reminded market participants last week, in a letter prompted by recent reports of "alleged fraud or malpractice" in the…
More banks put money on research
LONDON -- ABN Amro and Barclays Capital are among the increasing number of banks putting money on their trade recommendations for FX. Both have allocated money to start trading on model portfolios this year, joining CSFB, Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase as…
Firms race for North American retail investors
NEW YORK -- Trading firms and exchanges are building FX products targeting the retail market, as retail investor interest in foreign exchange soars in North America.
EBS set to cut delays with direct data feed
LONDON -- Spot broker EBS will launch a new direct data feed today, February 2, which aims to cut delays in the distribution of its spot prices from third parties such as Bloomberg, Moneyline and Reuters.