Industry news


Date: Sep 11, 2012

September 11, 2012: Bats in talks with FSA over exchange licence; CME reopens claims process for MF Global customers; EEX May Struggle to Take ICE Carbon Share

Bats Chi-X Europe is asking to be licensed as an official exchange, seeking to turn up the heat on rivals in London.  CME Group is giving ex-clients of failed brokerage MF Global a second chance to file claims against property owned by the dead company.  EEX got the nod to sell EU emission credits, but a Barclays analyst is skeptical of how much of a dent the exchange can make in rival ICE Futures Europe’s futures volume.

First Read

For 11th Anniversary, A Simpler Ceremony
JENNIFER MALONEY – WSJ.com
New York marks the 11th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks Tuesday with a simpler ceremony than in years past, marking a shift in the way the city remembers the 2,977 people lost that day.
jlne.ws/RPuv8k

++++

CME Group Launches New Natural Gas and Power Markets
CME Group, the world’s leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, today announced the launch of a broad suite of new natural gas and power markets.
jlne.ws/RPtRYm

++++

NYSE Liffe U.S. Expands mini MSCI Futures Portfolio with Three New Global Futures Products
NYSE Liffe U.S., the innovative U.S. futures exchange of NYSE Euronext (NYX), today announced the addition of three new futures contracts based on MSCI global indices. Complementing the successful family of MSCI index-linked futures already trading on the exchange, the addition of mini MSCI Canada, mini MSCI Emerging Markets Latin America and mini MSCI World index futures offers customers more flexibility and control in implementing their desired exposure to key global markets; and provides accessibility to a wider range of in-demand global economies.
jlne.ws/RNVAc5

++++

ISE Announces the Launch of the First Mutual Fund Based on an ISE Index
The International Securities Exchange today announced that the Virtus Wealth Masters Fund, which tracks the Horizon Kinetics ISE Wealth Index, was launched by Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.. It is the first mutual fund based on an index jointly developed by ISE and Horizon Kinetics LLC.
jlne.ws/RPtTPY

++++

Crossland client using Orc Market Maker for commodity options market making
Orc, a leading provider of technology and services for the global financial industry, announced today that a trading firm at Crossland LLC, a Chicago-based futures commission merchant (FCM), will use Orc Market Maker for options market making on CME agricultural products.
jlne.ws/RPtTQ0

++++

Want to Blunt High-Frequency Trading? Australia Has a Plan
Geoffrey Rogow – WSJ
Regulators should strive to make it unprofitable for high-frequency traders to front-run markets, said the head of Australia’s main stock exchange, outlining an Australian approach to such traders that contrasts with the more freewheeling model in the U.S.
jlne.ws/RPtTQ4

++++

Financial Regulatory Systems Fragmented and Unprepared for Next Crisis, Says Bailout Expert
Newswise
The “No More ‘Too Big to Fail’” rallying cry is unrealistic, says Cheryl Block, JD, federal taxation, budget and bailout expert and professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis. “When the next really big economic crisis arises, Congress is unlikely to stick to its ‘no bailout’ pledge,” she says.
jlne.ws/RPtRYx

++++

Icap to expand FX market surveillance team
Tom Osborn – Financial News
EBS, the market-leading electronic currency platform owned by Icap, is looking to bolster its team of surveillance staff as it bids to prevent members from engaging in predatory high-frequency trading behaviour.
jlne.ws/RPtTQ9

++++

Raj Mahajan Appointed CEO of Allston Trading
Allston Trading, LLC announced today that its Board of Managers has appointed industry veteran Raj Mahajan, 39, as Chief Executive Officer. Carlton Jones, 37, who has served as President and CEO since 2010, has assumed the role of Chairman and remains President. The changes are effective today.
jlne.ws/RPtRYB

++++

FINRA Announces New Head Of Corporate Communications
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that effective October 15, 2012, Greg Ahern will join FINRA as Executive Vice President for Corporate Communications and Government Relations.
jlne.ws/RPtSeW

++++

Can the S.E.C. Win an Insider Case the Old-Fashioned Way?
PETER J. HENNING – NYTimes.com
Over thirty years ago, the actor John Houseman intoned about brokerage firm Smith Barney: “They make money the old-fashioned way. They earn it.” A recent decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit may result in a test of whether the Securities and Exchange Commission can prove an insider trading case the old-fashioned way – by putting on a circumstantial case built around a well-timed trade and contacts with an insider.
jlne.ws/RPtTQf

++++

Let the Hedge Funds Speak! Why New Rules On Marketing May Be a Good Thing
Patrick Clark – The New York Observer
There’s a clear win for all of us in allowing hedge fund managers the benefit of free speech: Some of them are going to use it.
jlne.ws/RPtU6u

++++

MarketsWiki

MarketsWiki Page of the Day
Raj Mahajan
jlne.ws/QDRONZ

++++

MarketsWiki Recent Updates

People

Raj Mahajan

Companies, Organizations and Groups

NYSE Liffe U.S.; MCX Stock Exchange Ltd.; Macquarie Futures USA Inc.; Mizuho Securities USA Inc.

Miscellaneous

Upcoming Events

Statistics

28,229,055 pages viewed, 7,100 articles, 147,428 edits
MarketsWiki Statistics

Lead Stories

Bats in talks with FSA over exchange licence
Tim Cave – Financial News
Bats Chi-X Europe, the region’s largest share-trading platform, is seeking official exchange status from the UK’s Financial Services Authority, Financial News has learnt. If successful, the move would open up a new front in Bats’ battle with the London Stock Exchange and other European bourses.
jlne.ws/RPtU6v

CME reopens claims process for MF Global customers
Reuters
CME Group customers and members who were clients of MF Global are getting another chance to file claims against property of the bankrupt brokerage that was held by the exchange operator.
jlne.ws/RPtU6C

EEX May Struggle to Take ICE Carbon Share, Barclays Says
Bloomberg
European Energy Exchange AG, appointed yesterday to sell carbon allowances on behalf of the European Union, may struggle to win futures volume from ICE Futures Europe, according to Barclays Plc.
jlne.ws/RPtU6y

Fears raised over EU benchmark probe
Michelle Price – Financial News
The proposal, outlined in a European Commission Internal Market and Services consultation document published last week, follows in the wake of this summer’s Libor-fixing scandal.
jlne.ws/RPtU6D

Don’t Let Libor Bankers Police Themselves
Bloomberg
Sooner or later, the global inquiry into the rigging of Libor will have to deal with a sticky issue: what to do with the British Bankers’ Association, the trade group that was supposed to guarantee the integrity of one of the world’s most important financial benchmarks.
jlne.ws/RPtU6F

Basel Group Faces ‘Now or Never’ Chance on Bank-Liquidity Rule
Jim Brunsden – Bloomberg
Global financial regulators begin three days of talks today that may pave the way for a deal on liquidity rules that lenders and the European Central Bank warn could stifle the economic recovery.
jlne.ws/Nm5DUZ

Documents Show Former SEC Official Aided Former Targets
CNBC
A former regional enforcement official at the Securities and Exchange Commission who was sanctioned in May over alleged conflicts of interest in the multi-billion dollar Allen Stanford Ponzi case has a history of such allegations, according to documents obtained by CNBC.
jlne.ws/RPtSf8

CFTC Faults Peregrine Trustee’s Distribution Plan
Linda Sandler – Bloomberg
The Peregrine Financial Group Inc. trustee should delay distribution of $123 million to customers of the defunct futures brokerage until after testing customer accounts, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission said.
jlne.ws/RDrd3x

Germany’s top court won’t delay ESM ruling
MarketWatch
The German Constitutional Court said Tuesday it would rule as planned on Wednesday about the European financial rescue, despite a last-minute motion Sunday that might have caused the court to delay the decision.
jlne.ws/RPtU6K

Putting the plumbing in place for liquidity swaps
Michelle Price – Financial News
A looming industry-wide collateral crunch has given rise to a new form of trade – the liquidity swap, designed to mobilise liquid assets and transfer them to areas of the industry that are collaterally constrained.
jlne.ws/RPtVaD

Peregrine’s Wasendorf Cooperates, Receiver Says
BY JACOB BUNGE – Dow Jones
Russell Wasendorf Sr., the jailed chief executive of Peregrine Financial Group Inc., is cooperating with investigators probing the alleged fraud that led to the collapse of the futures brokerage. Mr. Wasendorf has spent hours working with the court-appointed receiver responsible for recovering and liquidating assets, as well as officials from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the receiver said in a court filing late Monday.
jlne.ws/RPtVaF

Regulatory

Dark Trading Gets Lighter in Canada
Markets Media
Dark trading in Canada is about to get lighter with new regulatory provisions on dark liquidity around the corner. On October 15, new rules that were approved by Canadian securities administrators and the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) will go into effect. The rules require that an order entered on a marketplace must trade with visible orders on that marketplace at the same price before trading with dark orders at the same price on that marketplace.
jlne.ws/RPtUn0

With Gensler in Hospital, Agency Scraps Vote
BEN PROTESS – NYTimes.com
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has scrapped plans to publicly enact rules intended to protect customer cash after the agency’s chairman was hospitalized over the weekend.
jlne.ws/REEI34

CFTC Staff Responds to Questions on Timing of Swap Dealer Registration Rules
Today, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) staff is responding to questions from market participants and other interested parties on the timing of when entities will be required to register as swap dealers. The CFTC is issuing a Frequently Asked Questions document to help market participants better understand the rules, what is required and by when.
jlne.ws/RPtVaL

Profile: Europe’s Mifid architect takes on the world
Tom Osborn – Financial News
When asked why he joined the European Commission rather than the British civil service, David Wright replied simply: “I always felt the world was a bigger place than just the UK.” It is this view beyond national self-interest that has defined the 60-year-old Briton’s career in financial markets regulation.
jlne.ws/RPtUn8

Bad Things Brokers Do and How to Avoid Them
Forbes
When state securities regulators checked up on brokers under their supervision recently, they opened a window on what investors can expect in terms of worst practices.
jlne.ws/RPtVaO

ISDA Legal Memorandum: DF Protocol and Extension Of Compliance Date For EBC Rule
jlne.ws/RPtUna

ESMA Warns Retail Investors About The Pitfalls Of Online Investing
ESMA today issues a warning alerting retail investors to the risks involved in online investing, and setting out useful tips to investing safely on the internet.
jlne.ws/RPtVr7

ASIC consults on amendments to clearing and settlement facilities guidance
jlne.ws/RPtVra

Exchanges & Trading Facilities

Conflicting views of ICE’s swaps-to-futures plan highlights uncertainty
Brian Scheid – Platts
When IntercontinentalExchange begins to transition its cleared energy swaps products to futures next month, it could mark the beginning of the end for cleared energy swaps, make many US derivatives reforms moot, and trigger a fundamental change in derivatives markets. Or could it be a mere technical change that will have an imperceptible impact on global energy markets?
jlne.ws/RPtUnf

BOX Options Exchange Connects To TMX Atrium Community
TMX Atrium, provider of smarter infrastructure solutions for the financial community, today announced that the BOX Options Exchange (BOX), the all-electronic equity options market, has joined the TMX Atrium community.
jlne.ws/RPtVrd

Nasdaq unwavering on paybacks for faulty Facebook launch
Reuters via Yahoo! News
NEW YORK – Nasdaq OMX Group Inc stands by its $62 million compensation plan for firms harmed in Facebook Inc’s glitch-ridden market debut and is prepared to defend against any potential litigation related to it, Lee Shavel, the company’s chief financial officer, said on Monday.
jlne.ws/RPtUDw

Montréal Exchange launches virtual trading platform
Montréal Exchange Inc. (MX), a wholly-owned subsidiary of TMX Group Ltd. and Canada’s derivatives exchange, today announced the launch of its options trading simulator. The virtual trading platform is an online and smartphone-compatible tool that enables individual investors to execute options trading strategies, enhancing their knowledge of both options and market dynamics.
jlne.ws/RPtVre

Business Officials from Colombia Converge at the NYSE for Second Annual Colombia Day
Today, representatives of some of Colombia’s top firms gathered at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to celebrate the second annual Colombia Day. This two-day event was organized by the NYSE, JP Morgan, i-advize Corporate Communications, and the Colombian American Association as a way to promote visibility to the Colombian financial markets.
jlne.ws/RPtVrg

CME Group Inc. Announces Date of Third-Quarter 2012 Earnings Release, Conference Call
CME Group Inc. will announce earnings for the third quarter of 2012 before the financial markets open on Thursday, October 25, 2012. The company has scheduled an investor conference call that day at 7:30 a.m. Central time.
jlne.ws/RPtUDF

BM&FBOVESPA begins bidding process for Market Makers for Options on the Stock of BM&FBOVESPA and of Usiminas
jlne.ws/RPtVrk

Institutional Investors Accounted For Largest Share Of ETF Trading On BM&FBOVESPA In August
jlne.ws/RPtUDJ

Karlsberg bond subscription ends early
jlne.ws/RPtUDM

Hedge Funds & Managed Futures

End to ‘alpha’ a stress for fund managers
Dan McCrum in New York – FT.com
It is no secret that investors of all stripes have struggled to beat the market since the financial crisis. The majority of hedge funds, for instance, have trailed both global stocks and bonds since the start of 2010, meaning that they have not added value to the simplest of portfolios.
jlne.ws/RPtVHD

Markit looks at web-based one-stop shop
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson in New York – FT.com
In 1982, a former Salomon Brothers trader named Mike Bloomberg set out to provide transparent data on the opaque US government bond market. Nineteen years later, Lance Uggla, former vice-chairman of TD Securities, did something similar when he set up Markit to provide reliable valuation data for credit default swaps.
jlne.ws/RPtUU2

Bets on European Bonds Paying Off for Funds
PETER EAVIS – NYTimes.com
When fear gripped the European markets in April, the money manager Robert Tipp decided to buy more Portuguese government bonds. He figured that European officials wouldn’t let the country turn into another Greece. “They wanted to have some success stories, and Portugal was one they wanted to keep in,” said Mr. Tipp, who runs the Prudential Global Total Return Fund.
jlne.ws/RPtUU4

‘Pan-European’ funds forsake the periphery
By Ed Hammond and David Oakley in London – FT.com
The world’s largest property fund managers are increasingly excluding all but a handful of well-performing markets from their “pan-European” funds, underlining investor angst about holding fixed assets in the continent’s peripheral economies.
jlne.ws/RPtUU5

Hedge Fund Association Expands Leadership Team
Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance
The Hedge Fund Association, an international organization that represents investors, hedge funds and service providers, today announced that it has appointed Don Steinbrugge, chairman of Agecroft Partners, to its board of directors.
jlne.ws/RPtUUb

Hedge Fund Gains From JPMorgan’s ‘Whale’ Losses
CNBC
One of Europe’s largest hedge funds, Brevan Howard, reaped the rewards from being on the other side of JPMorgan’s infamous “London Whale” trade earlier this year by buying up tranches of mortgage and corporate bonds.
jlne.ws/RPtUUe

Banks & Brokers

Nomura CEO vows shakeup: report
Market Watch
The head of Nomura Holdings Inc. pledged Monday to fundamentally reform Japan’s largest securities group to prevent any insider trading scandal involving the company from ever happening again.
jlne.ws/RPtUUh

Barclays boss ready to pare down investment bank
Reuters via Yahoo! News
LONDON – Barclays’ new boss promised bold action to tackle big bonuses at its investment bank and to cut businesses that suck up too much capital, as he reforms a culture regulators have criticized as too aggressive.
jlne.ws/RPtUUj

Barclays to shrink controversial tax unit
Patrick Jenkins and Daniel Schäfer in London – FT.com
Barclays will take the axe to its controversial tax structuring unit, as the UK lender seeks to clean up its image in the wake of a succession of scandals. The business, which at its peak may have generated as much as three-quarters of profits at Barclays’ investment banking operation, will be shrunk dramatically as part of the bank’s Project Transform under new chief executive, Antony Jenkins.
jlne.ws/RPtXPG

Before Scandal, Clash Over Control of Libor
DAVID ENRICH And MAX COLCHESTER – WSJ.com
Four years before a scandal erupted over banks’ attempts to manipulate an important interest rate, the head of a private association of giant banks suggested that perhaps the group shouldn’t be responsible for what had come to be known as “the world’s most important number.”
jlne.ws/RPtXPI

Big Banks Hide Risk Transforming Collateral for Traders
Bloomberg
JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp. are helping clients find an extra $2.6 trillion to back derivatives trades amid signs that a shortage of quality collateral will erode efforts to safeguard the financial system.
jlne.ws/RPtXPK

Canadian Banks Grow Amid Cutbacks in London-New York
Sean B. Pasternak and Doug Alexander – Bloomberg
Royal Bank of Canada is among lenders bucking job-cutting trends in the U.S. and Europe as acquisitions help swell head count at Canada’s biggest banks.
jlne.ws/RH9pVk

Bank of NY Mellon fails to end client lawsuit on Lehman
Reuters via Yahoo! News
Bank of New York Mellon Corp lost a bid to dismiss a lawsuit by securities lending clients who claimed losing more than $1 billion because the bank imprudently invested their collateral in Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc debt.
jlne.ws/RPtXPL

MS wins out on brokerage valuation
New York Post
Morgan Stanley emerged as the surprise winner in the closely watched valuation battle surrounding its joint-venture stake in Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, The Post has learned.
jlne.ws/RPtXPM

Deutsche tightens wallet
New York Post
Deutsche Bank is expected to announce today a tougher bonus structure for its top executives. The Frankfurt-based bank, co-run by Anshu Jain and Jürgen Fitschen, is expected to announce that its top 150 executives will have compensation deferred five years, up from the current three-year period.
RBS Said to Plan Direct Line IPO as Soon as This Week
Bloomberg
Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc is poised to start the initial public offering of its insurance unit Direct Line Insurance Group Plc as early as this week, according to people with knowledge of the discussions.
jlne.ws/RPtXPP

HSBC to Offload Insurance Units – Analyst Blog
Zacks
In the latest move to do away with its non-core operations and assets, HSBC Holdings plc ( HBC ) announced last week that it is planning to divest two of its U.S. insurance businesses to Bermuda-based Enstar Group Limited ( ESGR ) for $181 million in cash.
jlne.ws/RPtVHL

Lehman Brothers, We Heard You Were Dead
New York Times
It’s time to forget about the bank that almost destroyed the world.
jlne.ws/RPtVHN

Clearing & Settlement

Battle for derivatives clearing heats up
Philip Stafford – FT.com
The effects have been a long time coming. But a sweeping regulatory overhaul of the way institutional investors do business in the derivatives markets is finally being felt.
jlne.ws/RPtXPW

EBS and Thomson Reuters select Traiana Harmony for OTC FX clearing connectivity
Traiana, leading provider of post-trade solutions, announces today that EBS and Thomson Reuters have selected Traiana Harmony for connectivity to over-the counter (OTC) client clearing firms and central counterparties (CCPs).
jlne.ws/Qf0Oux

ICE Clear Europe Announces First LNG Cleared Swap on the Japan Korea Marker
IntercontinentalExchange (NYSE: ICE), a leading operator of global regulated futures exchanges, clearing houses and over-the-counter markets, today announced that ICE Clear Europe cleared its first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Cleared Swap on the Platts*Japan Korea Marker (JKM).
jlne.ws/ROrViM

Clearstream Strengthens German Executive Board
The Supervisory Board of Clearstream Banking AG appointed Martina Gruber and Berthold Kracke to the Clearstream Banking AG Executive Board in September. Martina Gruber will head the German central securities depository’s Sales and Relationship Management, Customer Service and Marketing areas. Berthold Kracke will be responsible for Risk Management and Compliance, Finance and Controls.
jlne.ws/RPtVHQ

Omgeo adds legal entity capabilities to Omgeo ALERT
Automated Trader
Omgeo has announced the availability of new Legal Entity data capture functionality in Omgeo ALERT the web-based database for settlement and account instructions (SSI).
jlne.ws/RPtXPZ

CME Group Clearing Advisory
NYMEX Options Expiration Operational Procedures for the Trading Floor and Clearing Members (A) Effective Tuesday, September 11, 2012
jlne.ws/RPtY6e

CME Group Clearing Advisory
Discontinuation of POS595 Clearing Report Beginning October 1, 2012
jlne.ws/RPtY6h

CME Clearing – Performance Bonds / Margins
Performance Bond Requirements – Refined Products Inter-Commodity Spread Credits – Effective Monday, September 10, 2012
jlne.ws/RPtVY7

Indexes & Products

BlackRock to lower fees on some ETFS to better compete
Reuters via Yahoo! News
BlackRock Inc will announce lower fees on some of its core iShares exchange-traded funds in the fourth quarter to better compete with lower-cost products, Chief Executive Officer Laurence Fink said on Monday.
jlne.ws/RPtVYb

Cogent Research: ETFs Gaining on Mutual Funds in Alternatives Space
Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance
While advisors are currently more likely to use mutual funds than ETFs for accessing alternatives , ETFs are quickly gaining ground. Among advisors who currently access alternative asset classes or strategies, 29% expect to increase their use of ETFs for these purposes.
jlne.ws/RPtVYi

UBS To Shutter All But One Of Its VIX ETNs
IndexUniverse.com via Yahoo! Finance
UBS, the Swiss-based bank known for its private client services, is redeeming all but one of its VIX-related ETNs, as the securities were not getting the traction the firm had hoped—in part because of the presence of a number of VIX-related ETFs that are now on the market.
jlne.ws/RPtYmJ

SIX Swiss Exchange Welcomes New Exchange Traded Fund Issuer ETF Securities
jlne.ws/RPtYmP

[TSE] ETF/ETN Monthly Report for Aug 2012
Trading value of precious metal ETFs increased in August.
jlne.ws/RPtYmT

Technology

Davy Chooses SunGard’s Protegent Market Abuse
Davy, Ireland’s leading providers of stockbroking, wealth management, asset management and financial advisory services, has selected SunGard’s Protegent Market Abuse solution to help manage market surveillance across its equity and bond trading operations globally.
jlne.ws/RPtWeC

Paul Finnegan to Join LIVEVOL as CEO
Livevol, Inc., a leading derivative financial technology firm recognized for their proprietary new generation of electronic marketplace products and services, today announced the appointment of Paul Finnegan as Chief Executive Officer. He is to join the firm as CEO on September 17, 2012.
jlne.ws/RPtYmX

Numerix Ranks Among Inc. Magazine’s Annual Exclusive List of America’s Fastest-Growing Private Companies–the Inc.500|5000
Inc. magazine ranked Numerix No. 2494 on its sixth annual Inc. 500|5000, an exclusive ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. The list represents the most comprehensive look at America’s top independent entrepreneurs and celebrates their innovation, resilience and tenacity. Numerix joins winner Unified Payments, Yelp, yogurt maker Chobani, Giftcards.com, KIND and famed hatmaker Tilly’s, among other prominent brands featured on this year’s list.
jlne.ws/RPtWeG

Friends Life Investments Goes Live with Markit EDM to Help Meet Aggressive Growth Strategy
Markit, a leading, global financial information services company, today announced that Friends Life Investments, the newly created asset management arm of the Friends Life Group, has gone live on the Markit Enterprise Data Management (EDM) platform (formerly Cadis Software).
jlne.ws/S72rt2

Symmetricom Expands End-to-End HFT Timing Portfolio with High-Performance Gigabit Ethernet Synchronization
Symmetricom, Inc., a worldwide leader in precision time and frequency technologies, announced today the expansion of its high frequency trading solutions to include the TimeProvider 5000, the highly-accurate IEEE 1588 Grandmaster Clock, now optimized for HFT networks.
jlne.ws/RPtWeI

NYSE Euronext Names Jon Robson as Chief Executive Officer, NYSE Technologies
Experienced Industry Professional with 25 Years in Global Technology Sales & Innovation
London and New York, Sept. 11, 2012 – NYSE Technologies, the commercial technology division of NYSE Euronext, today announced the appointment of Jon Robson as Chief Executive Officer, NYSE Technologies.  In his new role, Mr. Robson will oversee one of the world’s leading providers of global capital markets connectivity, streamlined transaction and data services, and innovative business solutions for the financial services community.
http://jlne.ws/Pete6x

MARKITSERV LAUNCHES PORTREC XPRESS
Press Release
New reconciliation solution designed for easy reconciliation of derivatives portfolios
London and New York, NY – MarkitSERV, the most widely-used electronic trade processing service for over- the-counter (OTC) derivative transactions, today launched PortRec Xpress, a new service designed to help asset managers reconcile their OTC derivatives portfolios quickly and efficiently.

Enforcement

CFTC Charges Lincolnshire Trading Partners, LLC. and Scott Geisinger with Registration Violations
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that it filed a civil enforcement complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, charging defendants Lincolnshire Trading Partners, LLC. (Lincolnshire), a New York entity operating in Pomona, Calif., and Scott Geisinger of San Dimas, Calif., with violating the CFTC’s registration requirements
jlne.ws/RPtYDj

SEC Charges Atlanta-Based Firm for Compliance Failures as Brokers Churned Customer Accounts
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged three former brokers at an Atlanta-based brokerage firm for “churning” the accounts of customers with conservative investment objectives, causing severe investor losses while the brokers collected handsome fees.
jlne.ws/RPtYDo

Ex-UBS Trader’s $2.3 Billion Trading-Loss Trial Delayed
Bloomberg
Kweku Adoboli’s trial on charges of fraud and false accounting, tied to alleged unauthorized trades that caused losses of $2.3 billion at UBS AG , was delayed until Sept. 14.
jlne.ws/RPtYDp

Setback for Reserve Primary as Judge Disallows Key Defense Witness
KIRSTEN GRIND – WSJ.com
The judge in a Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit against the Reserve Primary money-market mutual fund on Monday disallowed a key witness for the defense, in a decision seen as a win for the SEC.
jlne.ws/RPtYDu

IRS Issues Decision In Birkenfeld Whistleblower Case – Details To Be Revealed Tomorrow At NWC Press Conference
jlne.ws/RPtWeS

ASIC issues warning about promotion of Cycclone Magnetic Engines, Inc. and Roadships Holdings, Inc.
jlne.ws/RPtYDw

ASIC enforcement report: January to June 2012
jlne.ws/RPtWv7

Supreme Court of Canada dismisses Torudag application for leave to appeal BCSC decision
jlne.ws/RPtYTL

Environmental & Energy

Global Carbon Trading Takes a Big Step Forward
Triple Pundit on Environmental News Network
It has often been pointed out that our modern world could quickly become cleaner, safer, and more sustainable if only externalities, such as air pollution or carbon emissions, were internalized, so that they could be captured and factored into the economic equation. Then, as the argument goes, free market forces would provide the needed behavioral reforms and technological innovations.
jlne.ws/TD4afE

Countries must move urgently to save “under threat” CDM offset scheme
Business Green
The UN has admitted the low price of carbon credits is putting its scheme to help developing countries fund carbon reduction projects “under threat”, and has called on countries to substantially increase their emissions reduction ambitions to boost the flagging system.
jlne.ws/UFnneu

CME Group Launches New Natural Gas and Power Markets
Press Release
CME Group, the world’s leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, today announced the launch of a broad suite of new natural gas and power markets.
jlne.ws/Qzh3Xu

Asia-Pacific

Singapore Sibor Check to Include Resilience to Market Change
Bloomberg
Singapore is reviewing its interbank lending rate to determine how it can be strengthened and whether proposed alterations will withstand changes in the market structure, a government official said.
jlne.ws/RPtYTN

Bad Loans Weigh Down Vietnam
JAMES HOOKWAY IN HANOI AND ALEX FRANGOS IN HONG KONG – WSJ.com
Until a few years ago, Vietnam was one of the world’s hottest emerging markets. Now it faces an urgent task: fix a beleaguered banking system or watch its economy continue to slip behind faster-growing neighbors.
jlne.ws/RPtWvf

HKFE Announces Revised Margins For Bank Of Communications, China Merchants Bank And Industrial And Commercial Bank Of China Futures
jlne.ws/RPtYTU

Monetary Authority Of Singapore Takes Civil Penalty Enforcement Action Against Mr Shi Jiangtao For Contravening Provision To Prevent Insider Trading
jlne.ws/RPtWvj

Frontier Markets

MCX-SX aims to start equity trading in mid-Nov
Reuters via Yahoo! Finance
MCX Stock Exchange aims to formally start stocks trading around the Diwali festival in mid-November, chief executive Joseph Massey said on Monday, in its quest to become the country’s third major equities market.
jlne.ws/RPtWvl

Securities Commission Malaysia: Azman Hisham Che Doi Appointed CEO Of The Securities Industry Development Corporation
The Securities Industry Development Corporation (SIDC), the training and development arm of the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), has appointed Azman Hisham Che Doi as its Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.
jlne.ws/RPtYU2

Sukuk demand could treble by 2017
Sarah Krouse – Financial News
Global demand for Islamic bonds could triple to $900bn by 2017, as conventional investors look to securities backed by tangible assets in the wake of the eurozone crisis.
jlne.ws/RPtWvp

Analysis: Poor returns cast cloud over BRIC equity funds
Reuters via Yahoo! News
Investors fed up with years of poor returns are deserting BRIC equity funds, pushing share valuations to record cheap levels and questioning the future of the high-profile investment theme.
jlne.ws/RPtWLC

HSBC To Sell Its Business In Pakistan
RTTNews
HSBC Holdings plc said Monday that its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary,HSBC Bank Middle East Ltd., has entered into an agreement to sell its banking business in Pakistan to JS Bank Ltd.
jlne.ws/RPtYU3

Closure Of Bursa Malaysia Berhad – Market Holiday
jlne.ws/RPtZal

Miscellaneous

Geithner Holds His Own on Triathlon Front
MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED – NYTimes.com
Paul D. Ryan may not have finished a marathon quite as fast as he initially recounted. But Timothy F. Geithner can point to a respectable time for his latest triathlon.
jlne.ws/RPtWLF

Read article

Contact Contango on

+44 (0)7931 372586

or email