DiNapoli Report: Average Wall Street Bonus Up 15% in 2013 The average bonus paid to securities industry employees in New York City grew by 15 percent in 2013, to an estimated $164,530, according to a recent report from New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. That would make it the largest average bonus since the… Read More >>
CFTC Delays Swap Package Execution as SIX Financial Launches FATCA Service
Bowing to industry concerns, the CFTC has delayed a requirement that swap packages be transacted via swap execution facilities (SEFs), and has clarified that the mandatory SEF-based trading of interest rate swaps and index credit default swaps will begin on Feb. 15. Swap packages were granted a reprieve from the SEF mandate via a no-action… Read More >>
CFTC to Fix Broken Swaps Data System
The CFTC is quietly acknowledging that its swaps transaction data reporting system is broken. Mark P. Wetjen, the acting chairman for the CFTC, and his fellow commissioners formed an interdivisional staff working group last month to reassess the regulator’s swaps data-gathering processes. The new group is likely to serve as a catalyst for a much-needed… Read More >>
Janet Yellen to Lead the Federal Reserve as CFTC Fills Top Posts
Janet Yellen to Lead the Federal Reserve Janet L. Yellen will be moving up from vice chair of the board of governors of the Federal Reserve System to become chairwoman of the Federal Reserve after confirmation by the U.S. Senate earlier this week.When she becomes Fed chair on Feb. 1, it will mark the… Read More >>
2013: The Year in Ops
Last year was one of two steps forward and one step back as far as post-trade operations. As in previous years, regulatory overhauls particularly for over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives drove operations for the industry while there were some interesting disruptions such as the emergence of FIX for post-trade efforts. What follows is my interpretation of the… Read More >>
CFTC Appoints an Acting Chairman as Numerix Hires from Wolters Kluwer
CFTC Appoints Wetjen as Acting Chairman CFTC commissioners have unanimously voted Mark P. Wetjen, a CFTC commissioner whose major focus has been on swaps trading reform, to serve as acting chairman after incumbent Chairman Gary Gensler’s expected departure early next year, say CFTC officials.Wetjen became a commissioner on October 25, 2011, officials say. Before… Read More >>
SEC Adopts Volcker Rule
The SEC has adopted a final version of the Volcker Rule in a 3-to-2 vote that is a milestone for regulatory reform on Wall Street.SEC Commissioners Daniel M. Gallagher and Michael S Piwowar voted against adoption of the restrictions upon banks and proprietary trading. SEC Chair Mary Jo White and SEC Commissioners Luis A. Aguilar… Read More >>
Is the JPMorgan Penalty Just the Start?
The $13 billion penalty levied by the Justice Department and other officials against JPMorgan for its “serious misrepresentation” in the packaging of residential mortgage-backed securities is a clarion call for financial services firms that law enforcement and regulators are on high alert for RMBS-related fraud. The JPMorgan case is also a harbinger of more to… Read More >>
TARP Overseer May Become CFTC Chairman as Deutsche Bank Picks a CIO
TARP Overseer Nominated to be CFTC Chairman President Barack Obama yesterday nominated Timothy Massad, overseer of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), to be the next chairman of the CFTC as the regulator appears to be moving into a new phase given the recent turnover of commissioners.“For the past few years, Tim has been charged… Read More >>
Chilton’s Exit Heralds a New Era for the CFTC
Bart Chilton, the media-savvy CFTC commissioner, declared Tuesday that he is giving up his post by the end of the year. This creates three commissioner vacancies as Jill Sommers exited in July and Gary Gensler, CFTC chairman, will step down by year’s end; the remaining commissioners will be Mark Wetjen and Scott O’Malia. The replacements… Read More >>
