News and Notes

Basel Committee, Basel III

Governors and Heads of Supervision commit to ongoing coordinated approach to mitigate Covid-19 risks to the global banking system and endorse future direction of Basel Committee work The Group of…

Fed releases Sept 2020 SCOOS with focus on reserve balances

November 30, 2020

reserve balances, SCOOS

In September 2020, the Federal Reserve conducted a Senior Financial Officer Survey to gather views systematically from a number of banks concerning how the increase in reserve balances in the…

Regulators plan for end of LIBOR on December 31, 2021

November 30, 2020

Federal Reserve Board welcomes and supports release of proposal and supervisory statements that would enable clear end date for U.S. Dollar (USD) LIBOR and would promote the safety and soundness…

S&P Global and IHS Markit announce merger

November 30, 2020

S&P Global and IHS Markit announced an all-stock merger valuing IHS Markit at $44 billion. In a statement to clients, Dan Draper, S&P Dow Jones Indices’ CEO, said: “Combining S&P…

UK PRA expects to publish CRD V policy in mid-December

November 30, 2020

CRD-V, PRA, Prudential Regulation Authority, UK

The UK approach to implementing CRD V will occur through The Financial Holding Companies (Approval etc.) and Capital Requirements (Capital Buffers and Macro-prudential Measures) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020Opens in…

ICMA: Ghana’s repo market reforms can be “blueprint” for seclending and derivatives

November 27, 2020

Africa, Ghana, ICMA, repo markets, Securities Lending

Ghana’s money markets have been in rapid development across the past few years, including becoming the 4th country in Sub Saharan Africa to adopt an Insolvency Act. Many of these…

ECB: banks to start self-assessment reporting for climate risk in early 2021

November 27, 2020

banks, climate risk, ECB

European Central bank (ECB) publishes final guide after considering comments from public consultation Banks to perform self-assessment on ECB expectations in early 2021 ECB to fully review banks’ practices in…

Pirum enhances JPM tri-party connectivity to facilitate Dual Matching of RQVs

November 27, 2020

JP Morgan, Pirum, RQV, tri-party

Pirum is pleased to announce an enhancement to its connectivity with J.P. Morgan tri party, which can now facilitate Dual Matching of RQV’s for market participants. This development builds on…

Bank of England research on ring-fencing and bank funding structures

November 27, 2020

Bank of England, ring-fencing

Ring-fencing came into effect at the start of 2019. The regulation requires large UK banking groups to separate their core retail banking services from their investment banking activities, in order…

Get the weekly SFM update – our November 27 newsletter is online

November 27, 2020

Top Stories Trying to tie SFTR data back to existing market sources (Premium); SFM Interview: APIs are so hot right now, and so is hacking them (Premium); What the Financial…

FT: UK grip on European derivatives at risk in fight over post-Brexit rules

November 25, 2020

Brexit, CCP, derivatives, Europe, Financial Times

European regulators have refused to soften rules on swaps trading by EU banks in the UK, threatening London’s post-Brexit hold on a derivatives market worth €50tn a year. The Paris-based…

Fed blog finds concentration of bank reserves in March 2020

November 24, 2020

bank reserves, Federal Reserve, Liberty Street Economics

How Bank Reserves Are Distributed Matters. How You Measure Their Distribution Matters Too. Changes in the distribution of banks’ reserve balances are important since they may impact conditions in the…

ECB working group on euro risk-free rates consults on Euribor fallbacks

November 23, 2020

€STR, ECB, EURIBOR, fallbacks, FIX Orchestra, RFRs

Various fallback rates proposed, based upon the euro short-term rate (€STR) Potential events described that could trigger fallbacks Stakeholders asked to provide their views by 15 January 2021 The working…

Get the weekly SFM update – our November 20 newsletter is online

November 20, 2020

News and Notes, Uncategorized

weekly update

Top Stories If everyone is dodging responsibility for March’s Treasury market volatility, then what caused it?; SFM Interview: MarketAxess’ CRO on All-to-All traction in an age of COVID (Premium); Hedge…

First electronic SOFR vs Fed Funds compression trade executed via Bloomberg SEF

November 19, 2020

Bloomberg, EFFR, electronic trading, Risk Free Rate, SOFR

Bloomberg announced that the first electronic SOFR versus Effective Federal Funds Rate (“EFFR”) basis swap compression trade was executed on the Bloomberg SEF (BSEF). The participants successfully executed a 10-year…

US Office of Financial Research’s 2020 Report Finds Elevated Financial Stability Risks

November 18, 2020

Office of Financial Research, OFR

The Office of Financial Research (OFR) submitted its 2020 Annual Report to Congress today, which concluded that unexpected turbulence from the COVID-19 pandemic elevated risks across financial markets and revealed…

VERMEG launches new collateral management platform, Colline.Cloud, for small and medium sized firms

November 18, 2020

collateral management, Colline, Vermeg

VERMEG, the leading banking and insurance software solutions provider, has today launched Colline.Cloud, a highly cost-efficient end-to-end collateral management service, aimed at smaller buy and sell-side firms. The launch comes…

Deutsche Börse acquires leading governance, ESG data and analytics provider ISS

November 18, 2020

– Deutsche Börse to acquire majority stake in Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) in partnership with current management and Genstar Capital, based on an ISS valuation of USD 2,275 million (EUR…

WeMatch TRS goes live in the US with J.P. Morgan and Societe Generale

November 18, 2020

Total Return Swaps, US, Wematch

WeMatch has officially launched its US Total Return Swap (TRS) solution on Oct 6, 2020. This new platform allows Dealers in the US to match, negotiate, import, and manage lifecycle…

ESMA report finds European trading volumes at €27tn in equity markets and €101tn in bond markets in 2019

November 18, 2020

ESMA, Europe, securities markets

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its first statistical report on European Union (EU) securities markets, with a focus on market monitoring, reference and transparency data and securities…

Judy Shelton nomination to Federal Reserve Board fails to proceed in US Senate

November 17, 2020

Federal Reserve, Judy Shelton, US Senate

Vote Summary Question: On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Judy Shelton to be a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ) Vote Number:…

Two BofE speeches on leveraged investors and liquidity chains in market-based finance

November 17, 2020

Bank of England, Liquidity, Repo

The impact of leveraged investors on market liquidity and financial stability Speech given by Sir Jon Cunliffe, Deputy Governor Financial Stability, Member of the Financial Policy Committee, Member of the…

UK makes its own go-live dates for Investment Firms Prudential Regime and Capital Requirements Regulation II

November 17, 2020

CRR II, UK

As the Financial Services Bill continues its progress through Parliament, HM Treasury, the FCA and the PRA consider it appropriate to update industry on planned timelines for introducing the UK’s…

FSB releases Holistic Review of the March Market Turmoil

November 17, 2020

COVID-19, FSB

The analysis conducted and the issues identified in this report suggest that the efforts of the international regulatory community to reinforce the resilience of NBFI, while preserving its essential functions…

Siebert Financial expands securities finance business

November 16, 2020

securities finance, Sibert, StockCross

Siebert Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: SIEB) (“Siebert”), a provider of financial services, is excited to announce today the hiring of Anthony Palmeri and Jerry Losurdo to lead Siebert’s Securities Finance Group…

FSB releases guidance on CCP financial resources for resolution and announces further work

November 16, 2020

CCPs, FSB

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) today published final guidance on financial resources to support central counterparty (CCP) resolution and on the treatment of CCP equity in resolution. The guidance will…

ESMA: 2019 EU derivatives market shrank to EUR 681tn in outstanding total notional

November 16, 2020

derivatives, ESMA, EU, OTC derivatives

Market structure: In 2019 the EU derivatives market shrank to EUR 681tn in outstanding total notional amount in 4Q19 from EUR 715tn a year earlier. The market was slightly more…

Harvard professor: hedge funds not responsible for March 2020 US Treasury dislocation

November 13, 2020

hedge funds, Repo, US Treasuries

The Role of Hedge Funds in the 2020 Treasury Market Turmoil Marco Di Maggio This paper provides new evidence about the behavior of hedge funds during the disruptions that occurred…

Axios: Controversial Trump Fed board pick Judy Shelton gets closer to confirmation

November 13, 2020

Axios, Federal Reserve

Judy Shelton looks to be within striking distance of getting a seat on the Federal Reserve Board. Why it matters: Her political background is unprecedented for a Fed candidate, and…

ESMA identifies costs and performance and data quality as new Union Strategic Supervisory Priorities

November 13, 2020

convergence, costs, data quality, ESMA, performance

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s securities markets regulator, using its new convergence powers, has identified costs and performance for retail investment products and market data quality…

Get the weekly SFM update – our November 13 newsletter is online

November 13, 2020

Top Stories The Impact of SFTR on Industry Data Analytics; Finadium: US Repo Participants on Market Conditions and Prospects for 2021; What banks and trading firms say about choosing AI…

On ESG, Bank of England SecLending Committee says no changes but more dialog with clients

November 12, 2020

Bank of England, ESG, Securities Lending Committee

From the Bank of England Securities Lending Committee meeting minutes, 11 June 2020 The Chair provided a brief update on recent ESG developments in the context of COVID-19 disruption. Overall,…

ICMA puts European repo market at €7.9bn in latest survey

November 12, 2020

ERCC, European Repo Market Survey, ICMA

The European Repo and Collateral Council (ERCC) of the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) has released the results of its 39th semi-annual survey of the European repo market. The survey,…

ASIFMA publishes Asia repo market survey

November 12, 2020

APAC, ASIFMA, Repo

ICMA’s European Repo and Collateral Council (ERCC) and ASIFMA have published the results of a second survey of the Asia-Pacific repo market. Using similar methodology to the long-established ICMA ERCC…

ION approved to acquire Broadway Technology with conditions

November 11, 2020

Broadway, Ion

UK Competition and Markets Authority press release: The CMA has accepted a proposal from ION to sell Broadway’s fixed income business in order to resolve competition concerns about the completed…

FSB says no changes to this year’s G-SIB list

November 11, 2020

Financial Stability Board, FSB, G-SIB

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) today published the 2020 list of global systemically important banks (G-SIBs) using end-2019 data and an assessment methodology designed by the Basel Committee on Banking…

ESMA publishes report on post trade risk reduction services

November 10, 2020

CCPs, ESMA

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s securities markets regulator, has today released a Report on Post Trade Risk Reduction services (PTRR) under the European Market Infrastructure Regulation…

Tradition facilitates first bilaterally-brokered CAD/USD swap trade using LCH SwapAgent

November 10, 2020

cross-currency swaps, LCH SwapAgent, non-cleared derivatives, Tradition

Tradition has facilitated the first, brokered CAD/USD cross-currency swap trade using LCH SwapAgent in late October. Tradition is a global interdealer broker in over-the-counter commodity and financial products. SwapAgent is…

UK issues equivalence pathway for EU CCPs

November 10, 2020

Brexit, CCPs, EU, UK

HM Treasury equivalence decisions for the EEA States – 9 November 2020 The European Market Infrastructure Regulation (Article 13) Equivalence Directions 2020 will grant equivalence to the EEA States for…

ESMA lays out SFTR reporting expectations after Brexit

November 10, 2020

Brexit, ESMA, SFTR

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is updating the statement published in 1 February 2019 in order to provide certain clarifications relating to the derivatives reported under Article 9…

Goldman Sachs and AccessFintech Launch Derivatives Cash Payments Affirmation Service

November 9, 2020

Access Fintech, derivatives, Goldman Sachs, Total Return Swaps

AccessFintech, a leading fintech company evolving the financial operating model through data and workflow collaboration, announces the launch of a new derivatives cash payments affirmation service, working with Goldman Sachs.…

HKU Webinar: Passive Ownership and the Securities Lending Market, November 11, 2020

November 8, 2020

Asia, index funds, passive funds, Securities Lending

Speaker: Dr. Daniel Schmidt Associate Professor of Finance HEC School of Management Abstract: We exploit quasi-exogenous variation in passive ownership around the Russell 1000/2000 cutoff to explore the causal effects…

BNP Paribas opens agency seclending desk in Hong Kong as part of APAC expansion

November 7, 2020

APAC, BNP Paribas, Hong Kong, Securities Lending

BNP Paribas Securities announced it is expanding Market and Financing Services for clients in Asia Pacific, specifically by launching a new Agency Securities Lending Desk in Hong Kong. Located in…

US House Republicans introduce legislation to block financial transaction taxes

November 6, 2020

FTT, US

On October 27, 2020, Congressman Bill Huizenga (MI-02), Republican leader of the Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship, and Capital Markets Subcommittee and Republican leader of the House Financial Services Committee Patrick McHenry…

Get the weekly SFM update – our November 6 newsletter is online

November 6, 2020

News and Notes, Uncategorized

weekly update

Top Stories Designing the right blockchain for cross-border securities settlements; Hedge funds set for ESG “leapfrog” as alpha and liquidity plays emerge (Premium); Finadium Big Ideas Quarterly Q4 2020 now…

ESMA reports to EC on CSDR implementation

November 5, 2020

CSDR, CSDs, ESMA, European Commission, internalized settlement

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its first two reports on the implementation of the Central Securities Depositories Regulation (CSDR) covering central securities depositories’ (CSDs) cross-border services and…

ICI: prime money market funds didn’t trigger March turmoil

November 5, 2020

COVID-19, ICI, money market funds

There were serious and widespread dislocations in short-term credit and other fixed-income markets before institutional prime money market funds (MMFs) experienced redemption pressure, and some Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)…

ESMA publishes first Q&As on SFTR reporting

November 5, 2020

ESMA, SFTR

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its first set of Questions and Answers relating to reporting under the Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR). The purpose of this Q&A…

Tradeweb’s repo ADV spikes 78.4% to $328.5bn in October YoY

November 4, 2020

electronic repo, electronic trading, Tradeweb

Tradeweb reported that global repo activity set a new record, exceeding an ADV of $300 billion, driven in part by the addition of new dealers and participants on its global…

ISLA and Stech’s Global Principles for Sustainable Securities Lending part ways

November 4, 2020

ESG, ISLA, Securities Lending