Articles by Ben St. Clair
Can ESG trading and best execution coexist?
Not everyone thinks making a statement on ESG would work against client interests
Libor’s death propels SOFR swaps market
Trading in the risk-free rate jumped to a weekly high and long-dated swaps activity grew
Buy-side traders start to cool on ESG-deficient dealers
Managers adopting ESG metrics in counterparty evaluations may exclude dealers that aren’t up to scratch
Down but not out: US Libor trading continues amid ban
Outgoing rate hits market share lows in US swaps but little dent made in listed markets
Pimco, Capital Group lead expansion of index CDS market
Counterparty Radar: Total positions reach new high driven by growth of swaps referencing CDX NA IG
JP Morgan flies into top FX options spot
Counterparty Radar: Renminbi/US dollar trades also keep Morgan Stanley IM in front
Dealers look to cut SDP prices amid platform fee battle
JP Morgan offers different pricing for single and multi-dealer venues; Barclays mulls same approach
CCPs’ successful Libor switch raises hopes for sterling move
Optimism follows hitch-free conversion of cleared yen, Swiss franc and euro Libor swaps to RFRs
Single-name CDS trading bounces back
Volumes are up as Covid-driven support fuels opportunity for traders and investors
Buy-side rates traders staying on sidelines after wild October
Funds cautious after staggering collapse of the year’s steepener trade
Libor basis swaps jump amid rates uncertainty
Trading in the one-month, three-month basis highlights the market’s preference for Libor
How US funds trade defaulting CDS names
Counterparty Radar: Funds slashed sold positions ahead of 2020’s auctions but post-default Argentina remains a focus
PGIM chops CDS book as others bulk up
Counterparty Radar: The firm’s shrinking single-name book pushed Bank of America and Citi down the rankings
EU consolidated bond tape could boost all-to-all trading
Greater confidence in pricing may also have eased Covid liquidity crunch, says Dimensional exec
Sonia/SOFR swaps jump ahead of ‘RFR First’ initiative
Cross-currency swaps increasingly seeing RFRs on both legs
Pimco, Citi top for single-name CDS trades
Counterparty Radar: Top three managers account for 75% of positions – but only Pimco sells protection on the US
Big US managers diverge on CDS sales
Counterparty Radar: Pimco’s sold positions surge 80%, as PGIM and others retreat
Mizuho tries its hand in European rates
Japanese bank bets on handful of deep relationships to compete in crowded European market
FX option selling and weak demand behind vol slide, say traders
EUR/USD vol inches towards pre-Covid lows, but some believe inflation could upset trend
Brokers may flout deadline to darken US dollar Libor screens
SOFR First step raises transparency concerns; threatens publication of Ice swap rates
Mixed signals as swap dealers begin quoting ‘SOFR first’
Swaps referencing Libor successor revert to year averages after initial spike on conventions switch
No mandate, no problem: SOFR swaps embrace clearing
Almost 70% of RFR derivatives cleared and half traded over Sefs in voluntary adoption of post-crisis norms
US mutual funds’ crypto holdings doubled to over $1bn in Q1
BlackRock and MSIM are among 16 US fund managers dipping their toes into crypto investing
Competition may be coming to crypto ETP market-making
Flow Traders makes markets in every European cryptocurrency ETP. Banks want in on the action