(FTF News got a rare chance to check in with Erica Borghi, the current chair of the International Securities Association for Institutional Trade Communication (ISITC), and Lisa Iagatta, current vice chair for ISITC, an industry group that advances standards, technology and best practices for financial services operations. In a wide-ranging Q&A, they provide updates on… Read More >>
SIX to Create a Fully Integrated Digital Exchange
The stock exchange for Switzerland, which SIX Swiss Exchange Ltd. owns and manages, is building what it says will be an integrated trading, settlement and custody infrastructure for crypto currencies that will help client banks pursue their digital asset initiatives. Earlier this month, SIX officials said that the planned “digital asset ecosystem,” the SIX Digital… Read More >>
CFTC Focuses on Crypto Currency Listings
Earlier this week, the CFTC via its Division of Market Oversight (DMO) and Division of Clearing and Risk (DCR) released an advisory that sets up guidelines for CFTC-registered exchanges and clearinghouses registered that want to list virtual currency derivative products. But, before we dive into the new details, it’s useful to review what the CFTC… Read More >>
Gensler Says Crypto Exchanges Are a ‘Mess’
Cryptocurrency exchanges have a long way to go as far as providing protections for investors and other industry participants, says Gary Gensler, the former CFTC chairman who spoke last month at ISITC’s 24th Annual Securities Operations Summit in Boston. Gensler, who spoke during a wide-ranging political discussion about the changes underway in President Trump’s Washington,… Read More >>
CFTC & U.K.’s FCA Join Forces on FinTech Push
CFTC and FCA Sign Agreement to Collaborate The U.S. CFTC and the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) report the signing of an agreement that “commits the regulators to collaborating and supporting innovative firms through each other’s fintech initiatives” — LabCFTC in the U.S. and FCA Innovate in Great Britain. The heads of both regulators saluted… Read More >>
Regulatory Shifts, MiFID II & IT Leaps to Rattle Markets in 2018
Regulatory change and the importance of data and analytics impacting trading venues, investors, dealers, and those that support them will continue to be main themes this year, according to a new report by Greenwich Associates, “Top Market Structure Trends to Watch in 2018 — The Year of Digital is Upon Us.” Greenwich Associates provides market… Read More >>
SWIFT & Seven CSDs to Push for Post-Trade Blockchains
More CSDs Expected to Work with SWIFT Financial messaging and systems cooperative SWIFT has just signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with seven central securities depositories (CSDs) that commits them to demonstrating how distributed ledger technology (DLT) could be put to work for post-trade operations, including corporate actions processing, shareholder and related voting, and proxy-voting…. Read More >>
Post-Trade Providers Need to Be More Innovative: Survey
Being innovative is simply not enough in the current fast-paced and continually changing post-trade environment, according to a new survey by Six Securities. Post-trade service providers also need to offer technology that creates value beyond being “simply operational.” The report which was conducted in conjunction with independent researcher firm Vanson Bourne found that 67 percent… Read More >>
CFTC Penalizes Bitfinex $75K for Illegal Transactions
The CFTC has ordered online bitcoin exchange Bitfinex to pay $75,000, settling charges that it offered illegal off-exchange financed retail commodity transactions in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, and that it failed to register as a futures commission merchant (FCM). The bitcoin exchange says in its own statement that it “proactively contacted the CFTC in September… Read More >>
