Bank of America
Synthetics likely to dominate CDO issuance in 2003
Despite growing senior funding costs, the relative cheapness of super-senior swap funding should ensure that synthetic investment-grade issuance continues to outpace cash deals in 2003, according to Bank of America.
ABA sets up new op risk committee
The American Bankers Association (ABA) has created a new operating risk committee to help bankers reduce losses and comply with new capital requirements laid out in Basel II, the new regulatory capital accord being devised by the Basel Committee on…
US Senate calls for structured finance probe
The structured finance businesses of leading financial institutions in the United States are set to face a major business practice investigation during the next six months, with top US regulators set to introduce a new code of governance for structured…
Merrill Lynch takes Fenics
Merrill Lynch today said it will deploy the Fenics FX options pricing software from New York-based broker and vendor GFI Group in 100 global positions. Fenics replaces Merrill’s existing in-house pricing platform for FX options.
AIG makes senior FX appointments
AIG Trading Group has made four senior additions to its global foreign exchange operation over the past two months, a spokesperson in the bank’s Greenwich, Connecticut headquarters said.
Merrill Lynch in drive to promote active currency risk management
Any investor with international dealings should examine their currency exposure in a systematic way and treat foreign exchange as an asset class, according to securities house Merrill Lynch.
Attractive investment opportunities lie in managed synthetic CDOs, says Goldman
Managed synthetic collateralised debt obligations (CDOs) currently present an attractive long-term opportunity for investors, Goldman Sachs said in a new report this week. The CDOs, composed of credit default swaps on corporate credit, take advantage of…
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.
Riskmetrics aims for hedge funds
Peter Davies, recently appointed vice-chairman of New York-based risk management vendor Riskmetrics, has said the alternative investment industry - specifically hedge funds and funds of funds - is an area of focus for the company.
Basis trade opportunities decline as default market continues to tighten
The European default swap market continued to tighten substantially across certain sectors this week, correcting the recent dislocation between cash bonds and credit default swaps (CDS).
US investors complacent about currency risk, says Merrill
A decade of US asset and currency outperformance has engendered complacency among US-based equity investors, according to Merrill Lynch’s foreign exchange strategy group.
BoA launches new China receivables capability
Bank of America Global Treasury Services (GTS) has launched a new receivables platform aimed at boosting its China cash management capabilities. The China receivables services will offer clients a renminbi collections services from the end of the month.
Budgeting for 2003
Deutsche Bank, Merrill Lynch and State Street outline how next year's budget will be spent. For starters, it will be spent cautiously.
Deutsche Bank credit protection trades wider following Q3 losses
The cost of senior debt protection for Deutsche Bank has crept 5 basis points wider to 58bp-mid after the bank posted a third-quarter net loss of €299 million. In otherwise thin markets, credit derivatives traders in London said active buyers of…
HypoVereinsbank protection costs widen after poor Q3 results
Poor third-quarter results released by HypoVereinsbank on Wednesday prompted the cost of credit protection for the German banking group’s senior, five-year debt to widen 30 basis points to 140/165bp by trading mid-session today. HypoVereinsbank’s net…
Macquarie buys Merrill's Australian instalment warrants business
Australia's Macquarie Bank has purchased the instalment warrants business of Merrill Lynch following the restructuring of the US bank's Australian operations.
Equities rally brings in cost of US and European debt protection
A strong rebound in world equity markets during the early part of this week has caused the cost of credit protection on US and European institutions to markedly narrow. The contraction in credit spreads this week nearly matched the widening seen last…
Merrill ousts European debt derivatives head Chattwell
Merrill Lynch has ousted its European head of fixed income and foreign exchange derivatives, Kevin Chattwell, as part of the US investment bank’s efforts to flatten its senior management structure.
BofA develops new credit risk model
Bank of America is developing a sophisticated model that uses derivatives data to help asset managers get a better handle on credit risk within their portfolios.
Singapore FX build-up for BoA
Bank of America (BofA) made four new hires in FX trading in Singapore in September. The hires are part of the bank’s ongoing move to strengthen foreign exchange, said Larry Baum, New York-based global head of spot, forward and proprietary trading.
ABN Amro hires German global financial markets head
Dutch bank ABN Amro has hired Hermann Watzinger to head its global financial markets group in Germany, covering all of the bank’s activities in fixed income, including structured finance, treasury, asset securitisation and fixed-income derivatives…
Basis trade opportunities created by volatile credit market
The upswing in credit market volatility in the past three months has led to an increased dislocation between cash bonds and credit default swaps, with investors profiting from basis trading opportunities.
Weak equity markets continue to fuel widening in European credit spreads
Equity weakness continued to dominate the direction of European credit default swaps, pushing the cost of protection wider for volatile insurers and telecoms.
Poor vendor data delays BofNY securities ‘master’ project
The Bank of New York said its efforts to build a ‘master’ securities database was delayed due to poor data from between 13 to 15 data providers.