Foreign exchange
Risk South Africa: SARB’s Mminele outlines challenges facing central banks
Flailing markets brought on by bad US subprime mortgages present serious quandaries to the world’s central bankers, suggested Daniel Mminele, head of markets at the South African Reserve Bank (SARB).
Banks relied too much on ratings, supervisors say
Regulators from France, Germany, Switzerland, the UK and the US say banks that suffered serious losses during the credit crisis often did so because of avoidable failures in risk monitoring and management.
Risk South Africa: leveraged loan market to pick up in 2009
The South African leveraged loan market will calm down in 2008 after the global credit crisis but is expected to pick up again in 2009, according to Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), a division of FirstRand Bank.
Deutsche offers liquid gold
Deutsche Bank will issue three exchange traded notes linked to its Liquid Commodity Index-Optimum Yield Gold offering a simple way to take a leveraged or short view on the price of gold. The notes will be traded on the NYSE Arca, and listed as: DB Gold…
Merrill targets prospering frontier
Merrill Lynch Global Research has launched the Merrill Lynch Frontier Index, an equity index designed to provide exposure to the largest and most liquid stocks from frontier markets in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
BNP Paribas creates long only business for North America
BNP Paribas has created an equities and derivatives institutional long-only business in North America with mutual and pension funds and endowments. New York-based Alan Rubenfeld has been promoted to head of institutional relationship management for North…
US banks biding time on Basel II, says Dugan
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UBS offers food index for structured products and ETCs
UBS has announced the launch of the UBS Bloomberg CMCI Food Index which will be available through a variety of funds, exchange traded commodities and UBS structured products. The index is available in US dollars, euros and Swiss Francs and covers 13…
UBS and Bloomberg launch CMCI Food Index
The new UBS Bloomberg CMCI Food Index provides direct exposure to the food sector.
Blue Sky launches second tranche of 10% income product
Blue Sky Asset Management (BSAM) has launched the Protected Income Plan II (Pip II), the second tranche of its Protected Income Plan. The six-year plan offers an income of 10% per year, with 100% contingent capital protection at maturity. Investors can…
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FFAs: rocking the boat?
The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) plumbed the depths in early 2008, sinking from record highs in late 2007. Some have blamed derivatives market activity for the sharp fall. Roderick Bruce casts a beady eye over the BDI and asks where prices are heading next
Waiting in the wings
The long-mooted inclusion of the aviation sector in the European Union's emissions trading scheme is finally on the radar screen. Roderick Bruce discovers whether stakeholders are ready for take off
The prepay delay
Municipal natural gas prepayment deals withered in the second half of 2007 as a result of the credit crisis. While this year has seen a trickle of new deals, greater problems may be lurking. David Watkins reports
Peter Terium
Peter Terium, CEO of newly created RWE Supply & Trading, tells Roderick Bruce why he is the right man to lead the integrated business forward.
A changing carbon market climate
The EU Emissions Trading Scheme is stepping up a notch with a batch of new measures for its Third Phase. Andrew Holt finds out what carbon market participants think of the new proposals
Northern Rock nationalisation positive for bondholders
Holders of bonds issued by the Granite master trust will benefit from government ownership although questions remain over the vehicle's long-term future
A clearer picture
Fraud has gone to the top of the postmortem on the US subprime debacle. To detect and prevent it, more information at the loan level is needed, and the standardisation of data would also help investors in mortgage-backed securities make better decisions,…
Pimco's head of MBS sees upside in illiquid markets
Value to be found in private label mortgage securities where liquidity premiums greatest, says key investor
Modelling default rate in a retail portfolio and the estimation of portfolio risk
Considering correlation as the major driving factor for portfolio risk, Farshad Mashayekhi and Joy Wang present a methodology for the estimation of correlation among retail exposures based on historical default rates in pools of retail accounts. The…
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