Opinion/Wholesale
Creating an algorithmic safeguard
Stuart Crooks, vice-president, sales for FlexFX in London, points to algorithmic trading as a way to keep up with the increasing speed at which the market moves
MarketSpace: a tough challenge for CLS
The joint venture between CME and Reuters to create a market-wide FX exchange has every chance of changing the face of the industry.
Speculative positions for all currency pairs
Senior portfolio strategist Henrik Degrér at SEB in Stockholm develops a proxy to gauge speculative positions for all currency pairs
Still early days for the retail boom
The deadline for this year's e-FX awards fell on Friday last week, and the entries for the various categories are instructive about the current state of the industry.
Launches maintain rapid rate of change
The forex market is going through rapid evolution, with banks trying to engineer a market that better suits their needs.
Differing approaches from the biggest players
Where you base your business is in some ways just as important as how it is run. Deutsche Bank's decision to move back into Tokyo this week with a full sales and trading operation shows that it has faith in the Japanese economy's ability to deliver…
Cliquet options for the longer view
Cliquet options embedded in a zero coupon structured product can be used to take advantage of a medium- to long-term view, suggests Jeffrey Todd Lins, director, quantitative analysis at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen
Interbank market is the one to watch
The move by Lava to get into the interdealer broker space is a bold one that could pay handsome dividends for the Citigroup-owned business.
Icap needs to keep banks on board
So the deal has finally been done – Icap has paid close to $800 million for EBS.
China is not the only egg in the basket
Reuters' deal with Union Bank of India demonstrates that there is a wealth of opportunity in the sub-continent for banks looking to drive forex returns in emerging markets.
There are no options benchmarks
The following is a case study of option volumes with delayed delivery, by Nasir Afaf, global head FX options, Commerzbank Corporates & Markets in London
Defrosting the myths
The risk of an Icelandic crisis and its impact on other high-yielding currencies has been strongly exaggerated, says Beat Siegenthaler, senior strategist at TD Securities in London
Retail growth needs responsible attitude
The rise in financials' use of foreign exchange over 2005, as demonstrated by Greenwich Associates research (see related article, this issue), shows just how important it is becoming as an asset class.
How anonymity turned to acrimony
Anonymous trading is still one of the single most contentious topics in the industry. The threat posed by those that trade anonymously using the credit lines of prime brokers, became evident last year.
April – a perfect storm for Asian FX?
Investors could profit from the prospect of an unusually volatile month for the normally low-vol USD/SGD. Sean Callow , senior currency strategist at Westpac Institutional Bank in Singapore, explains how this can be achieved
The winners take it all?
In the past few years, it has become clear that the winners in FX are those that were first to commit to the right IT investment.
Banks should have the courage of their convictions
The speculation swirling around the future of two of the most important forex institutions is providing the industry with something to discuss, and for us journalists something interesting to write about.
ACI heads for Manila, but will anyone else?
The ACI's decision to hold its annual get-together in Manila has raised a few eyebrows to say the least.
Bank results need to be spelt out
Annual results season is here, and this brings a series of stories for FX Week on how banks' forex desks are performing.
Algorithmic trading in FX – watch this space
With algorithms now being tailored to provide best execution, Stuart Crooks, European head of FX sales at FlexTrade Systems, says now is a good time to start looking into these products
The bonuses of networking
Ronald Balzano , president of COESfx, says businesses relying too heavily on trading desks will lose out to firms that offer customers quick and easy access via ECNs
A new maturity for FX?
Justyn Trenner , chief executive and principal of consultancy firm ClientKnowledge, says a more discriminating approach to how liquidity is channelled is essential to the continued growth of the market
Sale offers a fresh start for EBS
And they're off! Yes it's finally out in the open, EBS is up for sale, and we've got a good idea who the runners and riders are.
This inequality must be reduced
The picture of the FX trader as a macho working class white male may to some degree be dated, but there is still not enough diversity in the market.