Foreign exchange
HSBC closes $380 million synthetic balance sheet securitisation
HSBC has closed a HK$3 billion ($380 million) synthetic balance sheet securitisation transaction backed by its taxi and public light bus hire purchase agreements. It is the first synthetic transaction backed by such asset classes in Asia.
Credit derivatives set to hit $10 trillion by 2007, says Deutsche’s Misra
The credit derivatives market is set to hit $10 trillion in notional value within five years, with the number of actively traded credit default swaps set to double by 2007 to 600, according to Deutsche Bank’s global head of integrated credit trading…
Breaking down the model
Brett Humphreys and Andy Dunn outline a method to help energy companies minimise potential model risk and thereby avoid costly errors in valuing deals.
Geithner to replace McDonough at New York Fed
Timothy Geithner, currently the director of the Policy Development and Review Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington DC, has been named the next chief executive of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Risk overhaul at US banks due to economic capital not Basel II, says Fed's D'Silva
Economic capital, not the impending introduction of Basel II, is driving risk management initiatives at US banks, according to the Federal Bank of Chicago's director for capital and market risk, Adrian D'Silva.
Algo to release flagship Basel II-compliant system in January
Canadian risk management systems vendor Algorithmics will release version 4.4 of its Algo Suite flagship product on January 15.
Independent third-party to take over Trac-x imminently
JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley are in the final stages of negotiations to hand over their credit derivatives index product Trac-x to an independent third-party. The move will happen “within a matter of days”, Andrew Palmer, head of credit derivatives…
Sponsor's article > Statistical process control
Too often, finance professionals manifest a smug sense of superiority towards their peers in manufacturing. In this third column in a series, David Rowe argues that when it comes to operational risk management, the manufacturing sector has much to teach…
Schwarzenegger pressed to give details of Ken Lay meeting
California-based lobby group, the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights (FTCR), has asked Arnold Schwarzenegger, California’s governor-elect, to explain the substance of his private May 2001 meeting with Enron chief, Ken Lay. FTCR, a non-profit…
Black Thursday
The costs of the recent power outage in large parts of northeast USA and Canada range from $6 billion to $10 billion. Hardeep Dhillon looks at the consequences of the blackout and analyzes the impact on the utility and insurance industries.
'A good deal for regulators and banks'
Paul Kupiec's article in the August issue of Risk – Does CP3 get it right? – raised a number of concerns about the application of Basel II to retail portfolios.
Algo to release flagship Basel II-compliant system in January
Canadian risk management systems vendor Algorithmics will release version 4.4 of its Algo Suite flagship product on January 15. Its enterprise-wide risk management system will include all the features necessary for Basel II regulatory capital reporting,…
China's regulator publishes new draft derivatives guidelines
The publication of China's long-awaited derivatives regulations has moved a step closer following the release of new draft guidelines by the country's regulator, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC).
Weasel parade
Investment bank CIBC has been found guilty of multiple counts of deception in underwriting a bond deal for cosmetics company Renaissance. Linda Corman reports on the evidence that emerged from the court case.
JP Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley launch Trac-x Asia
JP Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley have made yet another addition to the family of Trac-x global credit default swap indexes created by both firms, with the launch of Trac-x Asia.
Korean consumer default likely to affect Asian securitisation, says S&P
The deteriorating credit quality of South Korea’s securitised credit card portfolios has not only meant Korean asset-backed securities issuance has ground almost to a halt this year, but that it is likely to negatively affect consumer finance…
FSA warns of treasury management flaws
LONDON - The Financial Services Authority, the UK regulatory body, has highlighted key areas of weakness in UK treasury management following a survey of banks and building societies.
What price regulatory compliance?
The US banking industry has been inundated with a set of mandatory changes such as Basel II, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Patriot Act, which, responded to individually, represent a significant portion of an organisation's change budget. Dai Bedford,…
Geopolitical futures: The politics of betting
Using markets to forecast political events may not be as strange an idea as it seemed in July, when a terrorism futures scheme collapsed. But there is still scepticism as to whether such an approach would be ethical or effective.
China’s regulator publishes new draft derivatives guidelines
The publication of China’s long-awaited derivatives regulations has moved a step closer, following the release of new draft guidelines by the country’s regulator, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC).
Basel II is a key driver for real-time info
Speakers at the Cable & Wireless roundtable on real-time information in mid-September all agreed that real-time information (RTI) would help banks manage liquidity, minimise risk and improve operational efficiencies. They also agreed that one of the key…
Pressure mounts on directors that fail to use hedging tools
A decision on the Equitable Life Assurance Society case in the UK is expected this month, on whether the company has the right to take its former non-executive directors to trial for failing to hedge risks.
Industry Slips on Phase One of BCP Tests
NEW YORK - The U.S. securities industry will wind down Phase 1 of industry-wide business continuity planning (BCP) tests later than expected and will begin Phase 2 in the third quarter of next year, confirm officials who are taking a lead role in the…
S&P questions Basel II
NEW YORK - Standard and Poor's anticipates significant challenges for banks to quantify operational risk as outlined in Basel II, even though it expresses general support for the Accord as a whole.