Foreign exchange
German focus: Trouble below deck
Despite weathering a number of storms over the past decade, notably reunification and monetary union, the German economy is facing a new threat.
Chinese derivatives development appears far off
The timetable for the development of the Chinese regulated derivatives market, both domestically and for international investors, appears unclear, with the likelihood that foreign investors will not gain direct access to Chinese markets for several years…
OTC power market down by 60% as firms switch to regulated markets
There has been a sharp decline in the number of over-the-counter gas and power contracts since the demise of Houston-based energy trader Enron. Firms initiating power trades are increasingly conducting them via exchanges or through their clearing…
Swiss Re lands $75 million committed capital deal with US multi-line insurer
Swiss Re and Horace Mann Educators, an auto, homeowner and life insurance provider to US teachers with $1 billion in revenues, have struck a three-year $75 million committed-capital deal. By the terms of the deal, if Horace Mann incurs catastrophic…
LCH’s SwapClear signs up new members
The London Clearing House (LCH) has signed up JP Morgan Chase, ABN Amro and Commerzbank Securities as new members for SwapsClear, its interbank interest rate swap trading service.
Rating agencies divided over Aquila’s credit-worthiness
The two major rating agencies are divided over their assessment of troubled energy company Aquila, with Moody’s cutting its rating to junk and Standard & Poor’s (S&P) maintaining its investment-grade standing.
Icor completes global roll-out of FX option platform
Electronic inter-dealer broker Icor launched its North American FX options service this morning, marking the final phase of a global roll-out of its forex option platform.
Moody’s downgrades Aquila, as project BBB+/Baa1 backfires
Moody's Investors Service yesterday lowered Aquila’s senior unsecured debt rating to non-investment grade with a stable outlook, from Baa3 to Ba2. The troubled Missouri-based energy company had hoped to maintain its investment grade rating, exiting the…
Small but mighty
Introduction
Boston-based AIR releases terrorism risk model
AIR Worldwide, a Boston-based catastrophe and weather risk modelling company, today released what it claims is the first commercially available terrorism risk model. The model estimates the financial impact of insured property and workers' compensation…
September 11 accelerated energy sector woes, says S&P
Last year’s September 11 terrorists attacks that resulted in the destruction of New York's World Trade Center may have accelerated the onset of the US energy sector’s problems, according to a new report by Standard & Poor’s.
Job moves
QUOTE OF THE MONTH: - “Regulatory fear is creating a lot of uncertainty, and that fear does impact the financial markets” Jennifer Patterson, energy trading manager at Edison Mission Energy in Australia, arguing at the Australia Risk 2002 conference last…
Trying to grow
Credit derivatives
Creative solutions for unique problems
Credit risk
Freezing out the competition
Nord Pool
Red hot in the frozen North
Hedge funds
Going out on a limb
OM Group
Sweden’s swap philosophy
End-user profile
Brummer & Partners: a dominant force
Hedge fund profile
Basel II securitisation issues conclusion expected this week
Experts expect this week to finalise their proposals for handling the one major issue still outstanding in the complex Basel II Accord aimed at making the world’s banking system safer – the technically thorny question of how to treat the credit risks for…
Greenspan defends Fed’s role in tech bubble
The US Federal Reserve’s chairman, Alan Greenspan, claimed that it is far from obvious that a bubble, even if identified early, can be pre-empted by a central bank without inducing a substantial contraction in the economy, but conceded that better models…
Corporate Collapses Change Role Of Compliance
To prevent exposure to massive claims, compliance technology is increasingly moving to the front office.
The Hunt For Terrorist Cash
One month after the attacks on Sept. 11, Congress passed the USA Patriot Act. Now every financial firm in the country is a deputy in the search for terrorist funding.