Foreign exchange
HSBC breaks into top three
LONDON - UBS has held on to the top spot to be named FX Week Bank of the year for the third year in a row. But the biggest upset sees HSBC break into the top three at Citigroup's expense.
Brokers pulled into NAB scandal
MELBOURNE – National Australia Bank NAB) is demanding more than A$539 million ($394 million) in compensation from interdealer broker Icap and another unnamed broker for losses the bank incurred following last year's rogue-trading scandal.
National Australia Bank FX back in the black after trading scandal
MELBOURNE – National Australia Bank's FX business is showing signs of recovery nearly two years after the A$360 million forex options trading scandal was unearthed.
Future for Refco's FX clients still unclear
NEW YORK & LONDON – Hedge fund firm Man Group won an auction for the futures business of the stricken Refco last Thursday (November 10), but the fate of institutional FX clients hangs in the balance.
CLS builds up fund presence
NEW YORK – The fund management community are warming up to CLS, with a growing number of funds settling payment instructions over the system.
Hedge funds lose their shine
A trader at a German bank in London said the “mental bubble” traders had when considering the merits of joining a hedge fund has burst.
European banks up in third quarter
ZURICH, AMSTERDAM & FRANKFURT – European banks have had a strong third quarter in foreign exchange, with many up substantially over the same period last year.
Currency product ‘growth to continue’
LONDON – Demand for currency-linked structured products is set to continue into next year, according to market participants who have already posted strong sales this year.
BNP to target real-money sales in 2006
LONDON – BNP Paribas is to invest heavily in the real-money space early next year, as it looks to gain traction in an area where the bank has so far had limited presence.
SG CIB to white-label FX portal
LONDON – SG CIB is looking to boost the use of its single-bank portal with a series of white-label arrangements with banks it owns.
EBS hits the pause button
LONDON – EBS has stopped new customers going live on its platforms until early December as it faces a surge in demand for its services.
EBS hits the pause button
LONDON – EBS has stopped new customers going live on its platforms until early December as it faces a surge in demand for its services.
EBS signs second largest Chinese bank
BEIJING – EBS has made further inroads into the Chinese market by signing on China Construction Bank (CCB), the second largest state-owned bank in the country.
Russell signs up with Lava
TACOMA, WASHINGTON – Asset manager Russell Investment Group is pushing ahead with the expansion of its FX trading capabilities by signing on to a second electronic currency network.
Consolidation continues in FX
NEW YORK – A further sign of the consolidation of the foreign exchange industry emerged last week, with a survey revealing that just under half of North America’s spot FX market is held among a handful of dealers.
Vietnam opens its doors to Travelex
HANOI – Forex specialist Travelex has signed a deal with a Vietnamese bank to enable overseas nationals to remit money to relatives at home.
Reuters opens post-trade service
LONDON – Reuters this week moves into the post-trade market with the launch of Reuters Trade Notification System (RTNS).
Measuring US dollar and prospects
Thomas Lam Tai Loong, treasury economist at United Overseas Bank (UOB) in Singapore, outlines a way of predicting dollar movement through measuring growth in the US economy
Fraudulent FX sites uncovered
WASHINGTON, DC – The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed yet another action against a party participating in fraudulent forex activity.
Refco’s demise offers risk and reward for competitors
NEW YORK – Refco’s woes are having wider implications for the forex market, with the suspension of the platform sending shockwaves through the industry.
Singapore sees record FX volumes
SINGAPORE – Forex trading activity in Singapore reached the highest levels in seven years in 2004, according to latest statistics from the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
FX volumes ‘up one fifth’ in past year
LONDON – A surge in active currency management has driven up FX volumes by 20% in the past year, according to London-based research firm ClientKnowledge.
Asian central banks increase reserve management sophistication
HONG KONG – Asian central banks who have typically been long dollar are evolving with their reserve management, according to Claudio Piron, currency strategist at JP Morgan.