Articles by Ben St. Clair
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
Crypto market structure pushing institutions towards synthetics
Risk Live: Credit risk and custody challenges with spot could push investors to derivatives and ETPs
People moves: five leave JP Morgan, MS names co-presidents, and more
Latest job changes across the industry
Sterling swaptions edge towards Sonia ahead of July deadline
Risk-free successor jumps to almost half non-linear activity, up from 20% in April
FCA unfazed by ‘inflated’ sterling Libor swaps trading
Regulator says high volume of new Libor swaps traded since April 1 is linked to risk reduction
Traders see easy switch off Libor in Swiss market at year-end
Saron swaps trading still slow but traders say liquidity is rising and see no hurdles to transition
Market dispels fears over USD Libor cross-currency swap shift
Traders confident market convention will shift to RFRs on both legs of deals
CDS trading remains stubbornly human
Buy-siders sceptical of benefits of algo execution for credit derivatives
People moves: Goldman loses three to fintech start-up, departures at Bank of America, and more
Latest job changes across the industry