Russia-Ukraine conflict
In roiling markets, fraud rises. Banks want to understand why
Disruption from Ukraine and Covid puts managers on alert for misconduct, as risk controls are stretched to the max
EU banks kept building Russian exposures as sanctions loomed
Latest EBA data shows the bloc’s lenders cut holdings of government debt securities, but increased commitments to private sector
Time’s up for UK banks to unwind swaps with VTB
Majority of contracts have been terminated, but laggards face prospect of default
Wrong-way add-on helped LCH mop up VTB default
Margin supplement bought precious time to formulate wind-down strategy
Funds forced to estimate value of Russian securities
Western asset managers can sell Russian shares from April 1. But they have to value them by March 31
Ukraine conflict reminds quants that operations matter
Quants cannot ignore real-world frictions such as sanctions and market closures
Russian invasion stirs up ‘perfect storm’ for XVA desks
Declining credit quality of Russian companies and spike in inflation threaten CVA and FVA double-whammy for banks
Super backwardation trips up commodity carry trade
Wrong type of curve derails quants’ commodity carry trade for worst spell in decades
ETF issuers face dilemma with frozen Russian funds
To liquidate or not to liquidate? BlackRock, VanEck and Lyxor risk lawsuits if they wind down ETFs
Crypto industry faces ‘fork in the road’ over sanctions
Bow to policy-makers’ concerns about sanctions evasion or face reputational damage, says LSEG’s Schwimmer
Banks: sanctions evasion driving rise in money laundering risk
Attempts by oligarchs to siphon cash out of Russia sparks heightened scrutiny of AML alerts
On Russia, finance needs to find its moral compass
The looming risk of big write-offs should prompt investor rethink
Volatile HSCEI spells vega misery for autocall issuers
Index in ‘peak vega’ peril despite Wednesday's 12.5% rebound
Pimco, Franklin Templeton affiliates top for Russia exposure
Counterparty Radar: Funds had biggest long exposures to Russia across credit, rates, FX at end of Q4
Euro rates volatility wrong-foots dealers
Banks’ risk appetite and liquidity are low following painful rates vol moves, say traders
UniCredit ties buybacks to Russian exposure fallout
The Italian lender could lose as much as 200bp of CET1 ratio from a full write-down of Russian assets
The biggest Russian ETFs are filled with cash, US assets
ETFs issued by BlackRock, DWS and VanEck have sold nearly all of their ‘uninvestable’ Russia stock
How Russian stocks still meet EU rules for ‘good governance’
Loose SFDR definitions leave room for Russian state-owned firms to remain in article 8 funds
‘Broken’ euro FX options market facing liquidity concerns
Traders worry about market depth as surge in put buying sees risk reversals hit extremes
Top 10 operational risks for 2022
The biggest op risks for the year ahead, as chosen by senior industry practitioners
CDS committee to rule on scope of eligible Russian debt
Group will determine whether bonds with ruble payment options can trigger the contracts
CCPs urged to widen collateral net as commodities spike
Broader acceptance of emissions certificates and letters of credit could relieve margin pressure
Aaron Brown: war could usher in new sanctions era, hurting US
Investors must think long-term, warns risk expert; west may lose out to crypto and new financial hubs
Top 10 op risks 2022: geopolitical risk takes centre stage
Ukraine invasion, western sanctions and Russian response seen driving big rise in cyber and supply chain risks