Broker-dealer Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Smith (MLPF&S) will be paying a $2.8 million fine to the self-regulatory organization, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), for a variety of alleged reporting violations over several years that the firm acknowledges it is addressing. FINRA officials say they are citing MLPF&S for systemic trade reporting problems, including… Read More >>
Omgeo Offers SSI Support for Custodians, Prime Brokers
Post-trade service provider Omgeo is attempting to automate more of the back-and-forth between custodians, brokers and their clients in the latest release of its Omgeo Alert solution, version 5.0. Alert 5.0 adds the Global Custodian Direct feature, which enables global custodians and prime brokers to electronically maintain “timely and accurate standing settlement instructions (SSI) on… Read More >>
BGC Partners Moves Closer to Acquiring GFI Group
Interdealer broker BGC Partners is now tantalizingly close to wrapping up its hostile takeover of rival GFI Group after a bid by CME Group fell apart last Friday, with only 1.7 percent of outstanding GFI shares standing between BGC and the prize it’s sought since September. BGC officials are hoping that by extending its $6.10-per-share… Read More >>
BGC to Pay $100M to Tullett Prebon for Alleged Poaching
Interdealer brokers Tullett Prebon and BGC Partners have decided to bury the legal hatchet over charges that BGC attempted to poach employees from the London-based firm in 2009. As part of a settlement, announced Jan. 13, BGC will be paying its rival $100 million in an agreement hammered out via the New Jersey Superior Court…. Read More >>
Turquoise Launches Block Trade Service
Turquoise, the pan-European Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF), has launched a new service aimed at bringing together large block orders in a “truly neutral, passive environment,” undisturbed by “aggressive, low-latency trading strategies,” according to a company statement. The new service, Turquoise Block Discovery (TBD), sits on top of Turquoise’s existing Midpoint Dark Book (MDB). TBD was… Read More >>
