Articles by Alessandro Aimone
Client margin at CS down $14.6bn since Archegos collapse
Bank’s US clearing units slashed required funds for swaps and F&O since March 2021
No soft landings in flight to safety from Russia
Impact of Ukraine invasion hit bank balance sheets hard; its effects look set to continue
Nordea’s CVA charge jumps 30% in Q1
Highest reading for the Finnish bank since the start of 2019
Credit Suisse cuts leverage exposure by $11.5bn
CET1 leverage ratio remained flat over Q1 as drop in capital more than offset cuts in prime brokerage business
Ice Clear Europe issued $5.4bn VM call in Q4
Price volatility in energy markets behind the largest cash call on record by the CCP
Client margin at Credit Suisse hit a new low in February
Latest CFTC data shows significant reductions of required funds for swaps and F&O at the bank’s US clearing unit
Ice Clear Europe boosts liquidity buffer by 77%
More than half of the CCP’s loss-absorbing funds is now deposited in central bank balances
Required margin by FCMs hit all-time high
JP Morgan reported the largest monthly increase across the 48 reporting firms
Members of CME’s F&O unit added $950m to default fund in Q4
Market volatility triggered a $3.4bn peak initial margin call on one day during the last quarter of 2021
Ice Clear Europe hit by $1.03bn margin breach
The CCP’s futures and options division reported its second largest IM breach ever in Q4, as energy prices skyrocketed
Liquidity risk up 163% at Ice Clear Credit in Q4
Rate hike expectations led to the highest level on record of contributions to the CCP’s default fund
At CME, central bank balances hit all-time high
Over 70% of the CCP’s loss-absorbing funds stashed at the Fed, as interest rate expectations drive liquidity pool expansion
Goldman, JP and BofA face higher G-Sib surcharges
Banks could see an extra 50 basis points of capital add-on without remedial action
SwapClear’s required initial margin up 3% at end-2021
IM held against interest rate positions rose to highest level in a year
Citi’s share of cleared swaps hits new high
Latest quarterly increase, alongside that of Goldman Sachs, bucks trend across top US banks
LCH turns to central banks in rejig of liquidity pools
Central bank balances hit all-time high, despite aggregate fall in liquidity buffer in Q4
Peak IM calls at FICC leapt 13% in Q4
Number of margin breaches at the central counterparty’s GSD also edged higher, as some members increase exposures after margin calculations
OCC member default fund contributions jump 8%
CCP’s skin in the game fell slightly in Q4, making up 1.8% of the prefunded total
OCC issued $6.1bn VM call in Q4
December options expiration behind highest VM call in six years
On Russia, finance needs to find its moral compass
The looming risk of big write-offs should prompt investor rethink
US unit of Barclays close to a VAR breach in Q4
Largest loss-to-VAR ratio at the firm was highest among 10 US intermediate holding companies
Eurex boosts liquidity buffer by 26%
Increase largely driven by the growth of the CCP’s IRS business
Client margin up 39% at HSBC’s F&O unit in January
FCM reports highest amount since Q2 2020
VTB Bank’s timely sale of RCB Bank stake raises questions
The new ownership structure is currently pending approval from the ECB