Lost in the tsunami of federal government budget battle news is the welcome development that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has a new, official chairman — Rostin “Russ” Behnam, and that the stage has been set for a full roster of commissioners. On Dec. 16, the U.S. Senate voted unanimously to approve Rostin Behnam… Read More >>
House Passes Bill to Fix ‘Tough’ LIBOR Contracts
Bill Would Ease the Way to SOFR In a rare act of bipartisanship, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed legislation intended to ease the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) transition for “markets, investors, and consumers” with what’s known as “tough legacy contracts” — incumbent agreements that will end without a designated reference rate. The… Read More >>
JPM Asset Management Taps JPM Securities Services
Following a two-year search, JPMorgan Asset Management (JPMAM) officials report that they will be outsourcing to JPMorgan’s Securities Services division an updated set of global operations that will encompass middle office services, collateral management, and risk analytics. The move means that there will be a definite swing to a more flexible model for services that… Read More >>
Iress Completes QuantHouse Integration via Team Launch
New Iress Team to Drive Combined Solutions Financial technology provider Iress has completed its integration of the offerings of QuantHouse — acquired two years ago — with the launch of the Iress API Data and Trading Solutions team, which will drive the sales and support for a suite of trading data solutions and managed services,… Read More >>
LCH Approved for Portfolio Margining of Swaps
CFTC Also Permits Security-Based Swaps Margining The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has approved a request by Banque Centrale de Compensation, doing business as LCH SA, to provide portfolio margining of swaps and security-based swaps in a cleared swaps customer account, officials say. “The order establishes terms and conditions under which LCH SA and its clearing members… Read More >>
Credit Suisse to Exit Prime Services Business
Credit Suisse officials shortly after they announced an exit from the prime services business revealed that they have signed a referral agreement with BNP Paribas that will enable the French banking giant to provide support for the Swiss bank’s prime services and derivatives clearing customers. The move was made to facilitate the migration of clients… Read More >>
Wall Street Firms Show Resilience Amid the Pandemic
Securities trading firms in New York City have been doing well for the past 18 months despite the multiple challenges caused by a global pandemic, the ongoing market volatility, and the loss of 3,600 jobs, says New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli in his annual report on firms that constitute Wall Street. “Wall Street’s… Read More >>
SEI Acquires Finomial
Finomial Technology to Be Added to SEI Platforms SEI reports the acquisition of Finomial, which it characterizes as an “investor lifecycle management firm offering cloud-native financial technology. The technology is expected to be added to SEI’s existing investor-focused platforms to further enhance automation and digitization capabilities, as well as reporting and transparency.” SEI’s current… Read More >>
‘Zombie Libors’ Don’t Exist & Can’t Help: OCC
Banks must avoid complacency in meeting the Dec. 31, 2021 deadline for transitioning from the ill-fated London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (Libor) to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) because failing to do so could cause problems with operations, safety, and soundness. In addition, banks should not be hoping for a “synthetic or zombie” Libor version that… Read More >>
CFTC Focuses on SOFR for Interdealer Brokers
Just in case you were wondering, the CFTC is doing its part for interdealer brokers transitioning from the ill-fated Libor reference rate to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) for U.S. Dollar (USD) non-linear derivatives, which are instruments whose rewards are not set in stone like swaps, futures, and forwards. In fact, the regulator has… Read More >>
