Trading
EBS/FXMarketSpace rivalry heats up
LONDON – The standoff between newcomer FXMarketSpace and incumbent platform EBS revved up last week, with EBS claiming the former will favour Chicago-based users.
Malaysia sets up payment-versus-payment system
HONG KONG & KUALA LUMPUR – The Hong Kong Monetary Authority and Malaysia's central bank (Bank Negara Malaysia) launched a cross-border payment-versus-payment (PvP) settlement system last week.
City bonuses rise by a quarter
LONDON – Just under half of city workers expect a 25% rise in bonuses this year, according to survey results released last week.
Low volatility has affected the market, says Calyon's Lefort
LONDON – The major market event in 2006 has been low volatility, and new products have had to be developed to deal with it, said Christine Lefort, Calyon's global head of FX structuring.
Lacklustre bonus season is forecast on low volatility
LONDON – Headhunters say FX professionals are concerned that low market volatility will mean lower bonuses, despite predictions that overall bank remuneration will be up.
China's forex reserves exceed $1 trillion
BEIJING – China's foreign exchange reserves have exceeded the $1 trillion mark, said state officials last week.
GFT predicts increased volatility
Global Forex Trading (GFT) predicts that market volatility will increase in 2007, but said increased activity is needed to break current range-trading.
UBS triumphs as Citi bounces back
LONDON – UBS retained its top spot in this year's FX Week Best Banks Awards, as Citigroup bounced back to take second spot.
Dresdner joins EBS as prime bank amid rising volumes
LONDON – Dresdner Kleinwort has joined EBS as a prime bank, with the spot broker saying sharp increases in prime volumes demonstrate its ability to withstand challenges from new entrants.
Taking advantage of variance swaps
Loïc Henry, head of structuring at Calyon in Paris, suggests using variance swaps to trade non-directional strategies in an environment of low volatility
Icap sets up Russian service
LONDON & MOSCOW – Icap last month established a rouble rates desk, as the money broker looks to build its capabilities in the rapidly expanding market.
Thailand acts to curb baht speculation
BANGKOK – The Bank of Thailand (BoT) introduced new capital controls last week aimed at clamping down on speculative baht trading.
UBS triumphs as Citi bounces back
LONDON – UBS retained its top spot in this year's FX Week Best Banks Awards, as Citigroup bounced back to take second spot.
Flextrade beta-tests MilanFX system
NEW YORK – Trading technology vendor Flextrade has started beta-testing its block FX trading platform MilanFX, it told FX Week . The vendor becomes the first to roll out a block trading venue for foreign exchange and employ a dark pool of liquidity.
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.
ABN Amro cuts 500 more IT and risk jobs
AMSTERDAM – The Dutch banking group ABN Amro is cutting 500 more jobs from its IT and risk divisions, according to bank officials.
M&A flows – the Aussie angle
Sharon Yeshaya, FX strategist at Morgan Stanley in New York looks at the effect the current M&A cycle will have on the Australian dollar
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.
Banks overconfident on yen – CBA
Most banks are over-bullish on the yen, according to Richard Grace, Commonwealth Bank of Australia's Sydney-based senior currency strategist.
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.