Donald Trump
US banks held record $78bn in equity collateral before market crash
Stocks made up 11% of dealers’ OTC derivatives collateral at end-2024 – highest ever reported
Hedging playbook goes ‘out the window’ as Trump tariffs slam markets
Dispersion, put spreads and VKOs paid off as stocks plunged, but outlook remains wildly uncertain
Tariffs volatility prompts rush to re-hedge EUR/USD options books
Banks left scrambling to buy vol as spot surged beyond expectations
Top 10 operational risks for 2025
The biggest op risks as chosen by senior practitioners – and what they’re doing about them
Credit markets brace for Trump tariffs fallout
Traders have largely shrugged off the threat of global trade wars, but worries remain about economic weakness
Hedge funds flock to hybrids to trade macro uncertainty
Firms repurpose structure made popular by Trump trades last year
FX traders revel in March Madness
Chaotic Trump policies finally bring diversity to flows – to the delight of market-makers
Asia hours surge complicates FX options market-making
Late tariff announcements in US trigger hedging headaches during less-liquid Asia sessions
Tug of law: EC’s FRTB compromise plan can’t please everyone
Leaked draft consultation unlikely to reconcile the global versus regional bank divide
CCP models vulnerable to Trump risk
Volatility of ‘will he, won’t he’ tariff strategy could confound clearing house risk models
Short-term Trump FX trades ‘dead’ as euro rallies
EUR/USD spot rally and vol spike sees mass unwinds of long USD trades
‘Trump slump’ hedges rise on rate cut fears
One dealer notes fivefold increase in number of clients hedging against possibility of faster rate cuts
Delving into the European Commission’s proposed overhaul of FRTB
Raft of potential changes would benefit both IMA and SA banks – but only temporarily
Crypto custody a bit(coin) closer after US accounting U-turn
Federal banking supervisors expected to eventually relax regimes for safeguarding digital assets
Basel uniformity fades as members defy dress code
Rule-makers diverge from Basel III standards, denting aims of comparability and fuelling fears over fair competition
CRR III hangs in the balance as member states push for changes
Top EU lawmaker rejects calls to water down capital rules, while others see room for manoeuvre
Trump’s tariff threats stress London gold market
Cost of funding customer positions has shot up 10,000% as deliverable supplies shift to New York
AI and Trump tariffs spur hyped-up dispersion trade
Popular vol strategy pays off in January despite highest entry costs on record
Op risk data: Two Sigma pays the price for model mess
Also: KuCoin’s AML fail, Angola bribes bite Trafigura, and Trump’s green scepticism. Data by ORX News
Tariff news ‘ping pong’ gives FX options desks a headache
Dealers say Trump’s shifting deadlines sparked weekend trading rush and made it hard to monetise flows
Big banks could be sidelined from future rescue deals – FSB
Exacerbation of too-big-to-fail means G-Sibs could already be too large to take extra assets
Funds tap options on FX vol amid tariff disruptions
Dealers say vanillas, digitals and knockouts on realised vol increasingly used to navigate Trump news flow
During Trump turbulence, value-at-risk may go pop
Trading risk models have been trained in quiet markets, and volatility is now looming
Corporates eye complex FX hedges as carry costs mount
Leveraged forwards and options-based structures entice treasurers facing rates uncertainty and FX volatility