Foreign exchange
Top Australian banks report bumper FX profits
SYDNEY & MELBOURNE – National Australia Bank (NAB), ANZ and Westpac reported decreased overall profits in the six months ending September 30, reflecting the slower trading climate over the past few months.
Currenex develops Fix spin-off
LONDON – Currenex is launching an open standard Fix-based straight-through processing (STP) protocol for FX, money markets and precious metals this week.
FXMarketSpace grows with EBS hires
NEW YORK & LONDON – Trading platform FXMarketSpace has poached two staff from rival EBS as part of its buildup ahead of launch next year.
European banks down in Q3
ZURICH, FRANKFURT & AMSTERDAM – European FX results were down for the third quarter, with only Credit Suisse managing to beat last year's figures.
Calyon appoints Catalanello to spearhead forex
NEW YORK – Calyon has hired Robert Catalanello as head of FX in New York. Catalanello left Merrill Lynch, where was head of global FX client sales, in September ( FX Week , September 4). His role at Merrill involved developing and implementing the bank's…
Citigroup extends into Cyprus
NICOSIA – Citigroup has extended its forex settlement capabilities to Cyprus with the extension of its direct custody and clearing (DCC) network to the country. The move comes as part of a wider move into Cyprus. It will see the bank offering…
E-commerce source of best forex talent, says market
GLOBAL – Forex staff with e-FX skills and experience are the new recruitment market 'sweet spot', according to banks and headhunters.
FXall posts record daily volumes in October
NEW YORK – Multibank platform FXall last month reported record volumes at $64 billion in a single day, on Tuesday October 31.
European banks down in Q3
ZURICH, FRANKFURT & AMSTERDAM – European FX results were down for the third quarter, with only Credit Suisse managing to beat last year's figures.
Banks build forex in Asia
JAKARTA & SINGAPORE – There have been senior moves at major banks in the Asia-Pacific region this week, as banks look to boost their teams in the region.
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.
London lords it over continental rivals
London remains the heart and soul of the foreign exchange industry, with its position as the global financial capital of the world confirmed by a report published by International Financial Services, a London-based research firm.
London's forex share continues to increase
LONDON – The UK continues to be the centre for foreign exchange, accounting for nearly a third of global foreign exchange turnover, according to research released last week.
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.
GFT adds seven new currency pairs; range now totals 64
ADA, MICHIGAN – Global Forex Trading (GFT) last week announced the addition of seven new currency pairs to its list of tradable currencies.
WestLB expands its commodities desk
Düsseldorf – WestLB is establishing a new multi-product commodities trading desk in Düsseldorf that will cater to domestic and global clients.
Sharia forex hedges take off
KUALA LUMPUR & DUBAI – The market for sharia-compliant forex hedges continues to grow, with Citigroup structuring the first cross-border sharia-compliant cross-currency profit rate swap worth $230 million.
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
You can judge a book by its cover
Market participants of all shapes have access to a bewildering choice of platforms on which they can transact their FX business. There is a huge financial gap between the multi-billion dollar hedge fund and the hobby investor who wants to trade with a…
FXMarketSpace ups ante
LONDON – Twenty banks have committed to becoming clearing prime brokers on the FXMarketSpace platform, a senior official at the CME/Reuters venture told FX Week .
Keep it simple, says e-FX trading panel at conference
SINGAPORE – 'Bells and whistles' are an annoying distraction on e-FX platforms according to Christopher Brandon, managing director of London-based $200 million hedge fund Rhicon Currency Management.
Merrill Lynch bucks downward Q3 trend
NEW YORK & CHARLOTTE, N CAROLINA – JP Morgan and Wachovia saw falls in earnings from divisions encompassing FX in the third quarter of this year, while Merrill Lynch bucked the trend with profits up more than a quarter.
FXMarketSpace ups ante
LONDON – Twenty banks have committed to becoming clearing prime brokers on the FXMarketSpace platform, a senior official at the CME/Reuters venture told FX Week.
Regulator forces COESfx to close to new clients
PLAINVIEW, NEW YORK – COESfx, a US-based retail foreign exchange platform, was forced to close to new customers earlier this month after a regulator found that its books did not balance.