Fixed income
UK watchdog has competition concerns over Ion-Broadway deal
Trading tech giant has five days to address issues, or face months-long investigation
Volatility scaling flops in credit alt risk premia
Strategies miss recovery from March plunge, prompting rethink on speed of mean reversion
RMB hedging comes onshore as regulators liberalise FX market
Foreign investors turn to CNY for bond hedges as rule changes spur more competition
Equity derivatives aided BlackRock funds in March
Flagship Strategic Income Opportunities fund posted $253 million in net derivatives gains at height of Covid crunch
BlackRock's muni funds slow to rebound from Covid crunch
Cumulative returns have barely edged up for these funds since end-March
Recent defaults lead to record credit derivatives payouts
CDS auctions have yielded historically low recovery rates this year, meaning swap sellers have had to pay more than normal
China bond buyers tiptoe through credit analysis minefield
State backing for domestic companies is hard to gauge, as new investors are discovering
Big banks worry small lenders could derail Libor switch
As UK regulator reiterates 2021 warning, dealers say Covid-19 is forcing smaller lenders to divert resources
Electronic bond trading stalled in volatile markets
Bid/offer spreads on bond platforms spiked in March and the buy side struggled to trade
Ion rival TransFICC gets cash boost
HSBC, ING join £5.75m investment round, amid claims of shrinking tech choice
Safe havens no longer safe, quants fear
Equity-debt correlation breakdown and negative bond yields make investors nervous
Ion’s wrists slapped in probe of Broadway deal
Competition watchdog extends initial investigation after Ion failed to comply with call for info
TMX backs down on blanket margin hike after members revolt
Canadian CCP will review methodology and apply margin multipliers at the product level
Investors abandoned junk bond ETFs in March
Forced sale of ‘fallen angels’ could exacerbate outflows at end-April
Uncharted waters
How pension plans can better equip themselves for a period of economic upheaval. By Matthew Seymour, RiskFirst, a Moody’s Analytics Company
Local banks’ CDSs chase Italy’s sovereign risk higher
MPS and Banco BPM creditworthiness lags Italy’s
US Treasury market holds its breath after high drama
Intermediation broke down after off-the-run bonds were dumped on banks
Swaps liquidity slumps as Treasury stress spreads
Big buy-side participants report “worst day” for market depth in 10 years, as spreads widen and prices gap
Rates trading revenues up 154% at top US banks
Net gains on interest rates-related exposures top $21 billion
Top banks’ US Treasury holdings up 26% in 2019
Fair value gains follow plummeting yields on government paper
Ion’s Broadway deal leaves banks in a bind
Barclays and Nomura among banks that had moved from Ion to rival it now controls