Trading
US regulator loses retail fraud case appeal
CHICAGO – US regulator the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has lost an appeal to assert its jurisdiction over a retail FX trading firm it accused of fraud. Appeal court judges found in the test case of the futures regulator and AlaronFX of…
US banks still seeing record earnings
NEW YORK – Record earnings from foreign exchange continued into the first half, according to US banks’ financial results published last week. Citigroup, State Street and Bank of America all reported new highs in their FX or trading results, as currency…
EBS Live doubles data delivery frequency
LONDON – Electronic broker EBS last week announced an enhancement to its recently launched direct data feed EBS Live to double the frequency of its FX spot rate ‘time slices’ to 500 milliseconds.
Structured euro deposit adds cash as it hedges
A structured deposit denominated in euro can fulfill the twin goals of a European company by hedging its US dollar payables and generating a cash-rich position in its functional currency, says Didier Meyer, FX structurer at SG Corporate and Investment…
Central bank financing down
Foreign central bank financing of the US trade deficit is now below 30%. This means the quality of financing of the US structural deficit continues to deteriorate and pressure to sell the dollar will intensify, says Chris Turner, senior partner for FX at…
JPMC’s merger plans revealed
NEW YORK – JP Morgan Chase’s plans to absorb Bank One’s global foreign exchange trading business became clear last week, following the completion of the US banks’ merger on July 1.
Euro doubts remain despite EC growth forecasts
LONDON – Economic growth in the eurozone is set to exceed the European Commission’s forecast of 1.7% in 2004, it said in its quarterly report last week – but analysts remain sceptical that this will be enough to sustain the euro’s current rally.
Forex TV moves to Nymex trading floor
NEW YORK – Forex Television is this month moving to a trading floor in the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) building. The trading floor will be operated by sister firm e-FX Trader, which was set up in March to offer trading services in conjunction…
Baltics, Slovenia set for early euro adoption
LONDON – Estonia, Lithuania and Slovenia are likely to be the first of the new European Union member states to adopt the euro, Fitch Ratings said last week.
Rupiah vol ahead as elections continue
JAKARTA – The Indonesian rupiah continued to rise last week, hitting 9,000 against the dollar following a smooth first round to the country’s first-ever presidential elections. But market participants are wary of the medium-term outlook as the country…
International Assets buys Global Currencies
FLORIDA – International Assets Holding Corporation (Intl), an emerging market-focused financial services company, last week (July 7) purchased the FX operations of UK-based Global Currencies for $2.4 million. The payment comprised $1 million cash plus…
Rivals gear up for FX clearing
LONDON – The stage is set for a central counterparty clearing (CCP) system for FX as two potential providers moved their plans forward last week.
Hedge and gain during euro/dollar volatility
A six-month ‘volatile forward’ can help a firm hedge safely while also benefiting from a choppy euro/dollar market, say Eric Ohayon, European head of FX structuring, and Chris Weiss, FX structurer at Bank of America in London
Korean CLS utility opts for PAYplus
The utility through which Korean banks will use the continuous linked settlement (CLS) service for FX, has selected vendor Fundtech’s PAYplus as its core application, it said last week.
AIG restaffs FX post-merger
LONDON – Banque AIG, a subsidiary of AIG Financial Products, has hired six sales and trading specialists in a bid to upgrade the FX component of its cross-product service.
Property pressures the pound
As UK property price growth slows, investors are moderating their view on the Bank of England tightening cycle. This could add to sterling weakness, says Adam Myers at SG CIB in London
Hotspot adds market makers
NEW JERSEY – Hotspot FXi has added six banks to its institutional trading marketplace to act as market makers and prime brokers. BNP Paribas, HSBC, HVB Group, Société Générale (SG) and WestLB are now all live on the platform providing streamed prices to…
Refco buys stake in ACM
GENEVA – US brokerage Refco Group bought a majority stake in online FX trading firm AC Markets (ACM) for an undisclosed sum last week. The cash purchase was completed on June 29.
Consistency offers rewards
Few forecasters have been successful at both one-month and three-month currency forecasting over the past three months, our Index reveals. Only Westpac (top three-month forecaster and 10th place one-month forecaster) and Bank of Nova Scotia (6th place…
ABN Amro signs half CCIL’s members for CLS
MUMBAI – More than half of the 60+ members of Indian forex settlement service the Clearing Corporation of India (CCIL) will use ABN Amro as their provider for continuous linked settlement (CLS), the Dutch bank said last week.
Dollar set to depreciate
Net capital inflows will exceed the US current account deficit over the next year, prompting dollar depreciation to begin again, says Jay Bryson, economics analyst at Wachovia Bank in Charlotte, North Carolina
"What is risk management?" ask Risk USA speakers
BOSTON – The way banks and other financial institutions think about – and sometimes misinterpret – risk management formed the main theme of the opening keynote speeches at FX Week sister publication Risk 's USA conference held last week.
Merrill gets FX licence in South Korea
SEOUL – Merrill Lynch has become the first foreign investment bank to receive an FX licence from the South Korean financial services regulatory body, the Financial Supervisory Commission.