BNP Paribas
Negative repos distort dividend hedging strategies
Abnormally low repurchase rates are forcing banks to hedge their dividend exposures with swaps instead of forwards.
Leading lights
As Structured Products magazine celebrates its fifth anniversary, the time is right to take a look back a mere 15-20 years to when it all began, and to interview a selection of 10 pioneers who created and fostered the business from its European…
AIG forex prime brokerage bought by BNP Paribas
The US foreign exchange prime brokerage business of AIG Financial Products (AIG FP) has been transferred to BNP Paribas, along with eight staff.
Holding counterparty risk at arm’s length
Exchange-traded funds have been as exposed to talk of counterparty risk as the next structured product, although the risk is lower. Under the European Union's Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities III regulations, ETFs are…
CDSs on UK financials widen
The cost of credit protection on major UK banks rose this morning. The move came on the back of Standard & Poor's putting UK sovereign debt on negative ratings watch last week.
CDSs on European and US banks continue to widen
The cost of credit protection on financial institutions increased today across Europe and the US. The move came after the Bank of England's quarterly inflation report showed UK GDP growth was slower than expected in the first quarter of 2009 yesterday,…
BoE inflation report pushes CDSs on European financials wider
The cost of credit protection on European financials increased this morning following the release of the Bank of England's quarterly inflation report. The report conceded UK GDP growth had been slower than expected in the first quarter of 2009, and…
CDSs on US banks widen
The cost of credit protection on US banks increased this morning, having fallen - in some cases by as much as 50 basis points - on Friday after the announcement of the US government's stress-test results last week.
CDSs on European financials tighten on positive Fed comments
The cost of credit protection on European financial institutions fell this morning following the US Federal Reserve's announcement yesterday that the economic outlook is improving.
Encouraging US data helps CDSs on European banks narrow
Five-year senior credit default swap (CDS) spreads referencing European banks narrowed this morning. With JP Morgan announcing a first-quarter profit of $2.1 billion, market participants hoped for more encouraging news from the US.
CDSs on European banks widen
The cost of credit protection on European banks increased this morning, as UBS predicted a first-quarter 2009 loss of Sfr2 billion.
CDSs on European financials tighten
The cost of credit protection on European banks decreased this morning, after Goldman Sachs reported a first-quarter net profit of $1.81 billion yesterday.
CDSs on European financials tighten after G-20
The cost of credit protection on European financial institutions fell this morning following the end of the Group of 20 leading economies (G-20) summit in London yesterday.
CDSs on European banks narrow as stock markets rally
The cost of credit protection on European banks began to fall this morning following data from the US showing the rate of decline in the US manufacturing sector is decelerating, coupled with reports of UK house prices rising for the first time since…
Benelux flux
Cross-border Supervision
CDSs on financials continue to tighten
The cost of credit protection on both US and European financials continued to fall today, in the wake of US Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner announcing a toxic-asset purchase plan aimed at boosting the US financial system yesterday.
CDSs on European financials tighten ahead of Geithner announcement
The cost of credit protection on European financials fell this morning, ahead of US Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner's announcement of further support for the US financial system.
Dealer interest delays LCH.Clearnet and DTCC deal
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has pushed back the deadline for its takeover talks with LCH.Clearnet, in the face of a rival bid from a group of major dealers.
LCH.Clearnet bid sparks conflict-of-interest debate
A proposal by a consortium of major derivatives dealers to acquire London-based clearing house LCH.Clearnet has led to suggestions that banks becoming intimately involved in the clearing process could present a conflict of interest.
LSE may join LCH.Clearnet bid consortium
The London Stock Exchange (LSE) today confirmed that it is "looking closely" at joining the consortium of financial institutions bidding for London-based clearing house LCH.Clearnet.
Financial CDSs widen worldwide
Fading investor confidence in the stability of financial institutions has caused the cost of credit protection on banks across the globe to increase over the past 24 hours.
CDSs on Fortis tighten
The cost of credit protection on Dutch and Belgian bank Fortis narrowed this morning, after Fortis chairman Jozef de Mey and BNP Paribas chief executive Baudoin Prot told media the takeover deal between the two banks is still alive.