Asia Risk/News
Hong Kong seeks to create ‘fixing’ rate for offshore renminbi; move will bolster derivatives market
Hong Kong's efforts to create an offshore renminbi fixing rate are viewed as strategically important for the development of the offshore renminbi, with such a benchmark essential for the growth of CNH derivatives, say market experts
HKEx secondary market facility needs to withstand extreme offshore CNY liquidity crunch
HKEx says its proposed renminbi secondary market liquidity support mechanism for renminbi listed stocks is undergoing stress tests to ensure the facility is sizeable enough to support the healthy development of an offshore renminbi equities market in…
New loan-loss reserve requirement under Basel III set to crimp profits at Chinese banks
A new 2.5% minimum loan-loss reserve requirement to be implemented in China under Basel III is likely to reduce the ability of banks to distribute profits to shareholders
Bank of Korea wrong-foots market with rate hold; questions raised on anti-inflation stance and bank NPLs
The Bank of Korea held interest rates yesterday in a surprise move which caught fixed-income traders who had factored in a 25-basis point rise by surprise. The move questions Korea’s efforts to tackle inflation and raises concerns that the central bank…
RBI deputy governor maps out the future of OTC derivatives in India
A number of new derivatives initiatives are in the pipeline in India, including the development of a credit default swap market, interest rate forwards and derivatives trade compression services, according to Subir Gokarn, deputy governor of the Reserve…
New central securities company to facilitate short selling in China
One of China's leading securities houses sees a bright future for domestic investment banks developing hedge fund-like trading businesses, once securities short-selling is further liberalised on the mainland through the establishment of a central…
Merrill Lynch fined by SFC for mis-selling ILNs
The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission has fined and censured Merrill Lynch (Asia Pacific) for mis-selling index-linked notes to investors. The US bank will pay a fine of HK$3 million and repurchase notes held by private investors to the tune of…
Commonwealth Bank of Australia increases Asian rates trading in Singapore
Commonwealth Bank of Australia is expanding the depth of its Asian interest rates market coverage by hiring new staff in Singapore. The bank is also looking into moving some of its commodities traders to the Lion City
Impact of regulatory reform only 50% understood, warns KPMG's Topping
A substantial amount of the regulatory reform sweeping the US and Europe is still little understood and Asian institutions have yet to get to grips with the full impact of these changes, say speakers at industry event in Hong Kong. Intra-day data and new…
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Christoph Michel joins Natixis as Asia CRO
Christoph Michel joins French investment bank Natixis as chief risk officer Asia Pacific from CLSA.
GFI Fenics makes four new hires across Asia-Pacific
GFI Fenics, a subsidiary of GFI Group, adds four new members to its commercial team in Asia-Pacific.
Islamic Bank of Asia names O'Connor as new CEO
Toby O’Connor has been appointed the new CEO of the Islamic Bank of Asia
New Zealand banks still prone to offshore wholesale funding risks
The asset quality and capitalisation of New Zealand banks remains strong but dependence on wholesale funding is still a risk, say credit rating agencies.
Push for lower Tier II capital fund raising prior to window closing
Investment banks are urging financial institution clients to issue old-style lower Tier II capital before the window closes on January 1, 2013, when the full force of Basel III capital rules come into effect.
Fitch rates Australian covered bond legislation
Fitch Ratings endorses Australian draft legislation on covered bonds, but says market needs more detail on reporting requirements
Citi names new emerging market equities heads in Hong Kong
Citi has named Richard Heyes as head of Pan-Asia equities and promoted Adrian Faure to head global emerging markets equities
Vote now for the Risk Australia rankings 2011
Choose your top three counterparty dealers in order of preference in the following five product categories: interest rate, currency, commodity, equity and credit derivatives.
Video: Algorithmics' Michael Zerbs on the ‘unintended consequences’ from Basel III
Algorithmics' president and chief operating officer Michael Zerbs talks about the long-term impact of moving from Basel II to Basel III, including some 'unintended consequences' likely to emerge from the move to central clearing as well as the specific…
BNY Mellon names Stephen Lackey as new chairman for Asia
BNY Mellon has named Stephen Lackey to succeed Christopher Sturdy, who is relocating to New York, as chairman for Asia
Taiwanese banks exposed to domestic property and China risks, says Fitch
Fitch Ratings believes the cost of funding for Taiwanese banks could jump nearly 200 basis points should Taiwan or China property prices fall sharply. The country's banks are also prone to any slowdown in global economic growth.
FSB concerned about counterparty and liquidity risk in ETF market
FSB warns of counterparty risk due to rapid growth of synthetic ETF market; also expresses concern about on-demand liquidity in stressed conditions, particularly linked with vertically integrated providers.
Nomura names Adair and Dolan to replace Bouzouba as heads of equities for Asia
Nomura has named John Adair and Paul Dolan as co-head of equities for Asia to replace Rachid Bouzouba, who has left the Japanese securities dealer.
HKMA warns on US dollar funding risk from China corporate lending
Hong Kong branches of Chinese commercial banks are increasingly lending US dollars to state-backed enterprises. The surge in dollar demand from Chinese corporates comes as lending is squeezed onshore by Beijing's efforts to limit the credit growth of…