News
Ambac hires Dresdner derivatives dealer
Michael Cush has joined Ambac Financial Services, a financial services subsidiary of Ambac Financial Group, in its interest rate and cross-currency swap team in New York. The hire is in response to increased derivatives activities, an official at Ambac…
Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and UBS Warburg dominate FX derivatives in FX Week awards
Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and UBS Warburg led the FX forwards and FX options categories in FX Week’s awards again this year, confirming their dominance in derivatives.
HSBC’s purchase of Household triggered credit rally, according to BoA
Bank of America (BoA) has used its new credit risk model to show, quantitatively, how HSBC’s proposed purchase of Household International, announced last Thursday, sparked a credit rally.
Aussie funds shun currency overlay
Australian superannuation funds’ use of currency overlay has declined, according to a report made public last week.
UFJ spreads balloon by 160bp due to nationalisation fears
The cost of credit protection on Japanese bank UFJ’s five-year senior debt rose by 160 basis points today as fears grew that the bank would be hardest hit by Japan’s planned banking restructuring.
C&W protection costs widen 200bp following restructuring talk
The cost of credit protection on debt of UK telecommunications company Cable and Wireless (C&W) has widened by more than 200 basis points since its revealed late Wednesday that it would cut 3,500 jobs, undergo a major restructuring and reassess its off…
S&P rates first structured product as an index
Credit rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has rated, for the first time, a structured finance transaction, Core Investment Grade Bond Trust I, as an index rather than as a collateralised debt obligation.
Leclerc appointed chief operating officer at West LB
German bank WestLB will make Matthias Leclerc chief operating officer of its global financial markets (GFM) business unit with effect from December 1. GFM is the central business unit of WestLB responsible for treasury business, bond and derivatives…
Japan’s SMBC expects to issue synthetic CLO in early December
Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) is preparing to launch a synthetic balance-sheet collateralised loan obligation (CLO) referenced on ¥500 billion worth of loans extended to 1,500 Japanese small to medium-sized companies.
Prmia forms academic advisory council
The Professional Risk Managers’ International Association (Prmia) has created an academic advisory council in a bid to further the integration of risk management theory and practical application.
EU expected to report on Cad 3 progress next week
The European Commission is expected to give details on November 18 about how it intends applying the complex Basel II bank safety rules in the European Union, commission officials confirmed today.
Simplex Technology adds credit derivatives module
Japanese financial software firm Simplex Technology plans to introduce credit derivatives capabilities to spDeriv, its interest rate and foreign exchange derivatives trading platform, according to Mitsuru Igarashi, senior managing director at the company…
ING closes first arbitrage synthetic CDO
ING Financial Markets closed its first arbitrage synthetic collateralised debt obligation today. The CDO is referenced on a static portfolio of 100 credit default swaps worth $1 billion.
Loan hedgers shy away from CDS market
Despite a surge in European lending activity during the past three months, many banks have decided not to hedge their risk with credit default swaps (CDSs), according to research by Morgan Stanley.
Canadian clearing house CDCC receives first rating from S&P
The Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corporation (CDCC), a unit of the Bourse de Montreal, has received an ‘AA’ rating from credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P). The rating could help CDCC expand its services to clear over-the-counter derivatives…
Cost of credit protection for IntesaBci widens due to weak Q3 results
The cost of senior five-year credit protection for IntesaBci widened 12 basis points to 87bp-mid, with its subordinated debt protection widening 40bp to 190bp-mid, after it reported weaker-than-expected results yesterday.
Isda presses Congress for passage of netting provisions
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association, the trade association for the financial risk management industry, has teamed with other key trade bodies in pressing the United States Congress to secure favourable passage of legislation on financial…
US and European credit derivatives markets remain muted
Default protection costs continue to tighten in both the US and the European credit default swap market in line with the cash market, traders said today, adding that volumes continue to remain relatively muted, particularly in the European markets.
Basel II op risk charge will help tackle concerns, says McDonough
NEW YORK - Banking supervisors believe that a separate capital charge for operational risk under the Basel II capital rules will bolster efforts to find better ways of addressing concern about the operational hazards faced by banks, the world's chief…
Hungarian utility selects KWI for trading and risk management
MVM, one of Hungary's largest electricity wholesalers, has signed up to use KW3000, the energy trading and risk management system developed by London-based energy risk management software company KWI.
Isda reports 75% increase in collateral use for derivatives trades
Collateral use in over-the-counter derivatives transactions and related margined activities such as repos and structured products increased 75% from $250 billion in 2001 to $437 billion this year, said the International Swaps and Derivatives Association…
Totem launches European power and gas valuation service
Totem Market Valuations, a UK-based provider of derivatives valuation services, has launched an over-the-counter European power and gas derivatives pricing service targeted at oil majors, merchant energy companies, banks and former state monopolies…
BIS opens representative office in Mexico
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has opened a representative office in Mexico City to serve as a centre for its activities in the Americas.
VAR “not to blame” for 1998 crisis, says leading academic
“There is no evidence to support the assertion that VAR-based risk management systems destabilise the financial system,” says University of California at Irvine professor Philippe Jorion, in a paper just published in the fall 2002 edition of The Journal…