Trading
CLS bags world’s largest pension fund
AMSTERDAM – The world’s largest pension fund – the e170 billion Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP – has gone live on CLS as a third party of ABN Amro.
Multi-hurdle barrier options
Remy Marino, head of structuring, interest rates, currencies and commodities at Calyon in New York, discusses how investors or hedgers can optimise the cost of their barrier strategies by utilising a multi-hurdle barrier option
Eurex joins FX futures fray
CHICAGO AND FRANKFURT – Eurex, the Frankfurt-based derivatives exchange, has entered the FX market with a September date set for the launch of its futures platform.
Patsystems supports CME on Reuters
LONDON – Software vendor Patsystems has signed a deal to provide technology supporting Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) FX on Reuters, as it looks to extend into new areas and develop beyond traditional markets.
More EM currencies for RBS FiX
LONDON – Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has made a further upgrade to its online FX service, RBS FiX, with the addition of forward benchmark prices for 12 emerging markets currencies.
CMC Markets adds new products and offices
LONDON/TORONTO – Online FX platform CMC Markets is set to expand with the launch of new currency baskets and additional offices globally.
EM options taking the lead
LONDON – Emerging market currencies is the biggest market for options traders, according to a survey by sister publication Risk magazine, with these units representing more than a third of the total traded.
Dollar recovery under strain
After recent strength the greenback looks vulnerable, according to London-based Lena Komileva, G7 Market Economist at Tullett Prebon
‘One size fits all’ is not appropriate
Sabrina Jacobs, FX strategist, capital markets, at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, says Asian currencies need to be looked at on an individual basis
Bullish dollar outlook wins out
Rabobank has maintained its recent dominance of the one-month and one-month year-todate rankings by retaining a moderately bullish outlook for the US dollar throughout 2005.
Euro fall to continue, say analysts
LONDON, COPENHAGEN AND NEW YORK – The euro is set to stay weak against the dollar, according to FX strategists.
Currency warrants taking off in Asia
Hong Kong – Banks are looking to meet the increasing demand for forex-related products by launching currency warrants in major Asian markets.
Logicscope/Velocity service due
LONDON – Logicscope Realisations, the London-based financial software development company, and Adelaide-based financial services firm Velocity Systems International, have formed an alliance, initially focusing on FX.
Five charged over $3m currency fraud
WASHINGTON, DC – The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed another action against individuals taking part in fraudulent foreign exchange trading.
InfoReach adds HotspotFXi to TMS
NEW YORK – InfoReach, the financial securities trading technology firm, has teamed up with Hotspot FXi, the online foreign exchange platform, to allow its clients access to its prices.
Dollar strength despite deficit
Investors Bank & Trust topped the one-month ranking thanks to an accurate prediction on the market’s attitude to the US twin deficits (current account and budget) earlier this year, which led it to a stronger dollar forecast (FX Week, March 7).
‘FX markets are unreadable’
Foreign exchange markets are notoriously difficult to predict, so corporates shouldn’t bother, argues Simon Miles (right), currency strategist at Corporate FX. Instead they should focus on deciding how to hedge the risk so they can determine its real…
‘No’ votes lead to record flows
LONDON – The ‘no’ votes on the EU constitutionreferendums last week led to unexpectedvolatility in the currency markets, and the highestvolumes ever seen on some platforms.
Deutsche loses staff across desks
LONDON – Deutsche Bank in London has haemorrhaged five foreign exchange staff from structuring, sales and trading in recent weeks. Jeremy Smart, director of FX structuring, who reported to Rhomiaos Ram, global head of complex risk, has been linked with a…
EBS opens in Korea
SEOUL – EBS , provider of electronic trading and market data solutions, has opened in Korea as an offshore broker for non-South Korean won pairs.
Euro returns to fair value
Stephen Jen, global head of currency research at Morgan Stanley in London, argues that the fall in the euro is more a reflection of the fact that the single unit was overvalued than a reaction to the ‘no’ votes in France and Holland.
Imbalances the major threat
STOCKHOLM – Global imbalances caused by currency intervention are building up and pose a real threat to world economic stability. This was the key message of central bankers at last week’s ACI conference in Stockholm.
Benefiting from yuan revaluation
The Lloyds TSB Financial Markets team suggests how to benefit if the Chinese yuan revalues and Asia follows suit
Calyon gets it on cable
Calyon and HSBC were closest in predicting where sterling would end up for their three-month forecast. They both posted 0.126% divergence for cable in the three-month ranking.