Articles by Ben St. Clair
Vanguard is new kid on the CDS options block
Counterparty Radar: Passive behemoth held a quarter of reported notional among US retail funds in Q4 2024
Patience pays off for XVA desks in wild week of tariff swings
Dealers avoided knee-jerk reactions that could have caused credit spreads to widen further
Shifting credit markets could push SRT pricing wider
Rising volatility may force issuers to adjust pricing in line with broader credit spread trends
Credit markets brace for Trump tariffs fallout
Traders have largely shrugged off the threat of global trade wars, but worries remain about economic weakness
Basel tweak may weaken counterparty hedging, industry warns
Proposed technical revision risks dissuading bespoke CDSs and guarantees covering derivatives exposures
Can Europe prepare ground for insurers in securitised products?
Convincing regulators to make investing more viable would be a first step to revitalising insurer interest
SRT markets kick US banks’ caution to the kerb
Market for capital relief trades continues apace despite US banks’ reluctance to offer leverage
EU banks show basic instinct for credit valuation adjustments
Simpler approach to CVA appeals even to some already using more complex models for counterparty risk
US block size changes reveal trillions in swaps trading
Fears of information leakage force some large buy-side users to adjust execution strategy
Intrum auction gives CDS buyers minimal payout
Outcome seen as success for market that needed to adjust auction terms amid ongoing restructuring
CDS market awaits uncertain Intrum auction result
Swedish firm’s restructuring deal limits flexibility in settling contracts, risking curbs on payouts
Futures exchanges look to ride credit ETF wave
Proponents hope for increased buy-side trading, with three exchanges competing for market share
Repo and FX markets buck year-end crunch fears
Price spike concerns ease as September’s surprise SOFR jump led to early preparations for bank window dressing
Credit risk transfer, with a derivatives twist
Dealers angle to revive market that enables them to offload counterparty exposures, freeing up capital
FX options market eyes Trump inauguration trades
FX Markets Europe: Traders turn to short-dated plays on cabinet picks and early tariff actions
Credit traders await resolution on delayed swaps index
Market participants confident CDX Financials fix will overcome regulatory obstacles
Basis swaps surge amid US repo concerns
Fed funds-versus-SOFR swap volumes nearly triple as declining Fed reserves impact funding rates
Boeing’s descent to junk doesn’t scare investors
Analysts and managers say market can absorb any selling pressure from potential downgrade
CDS market revamp aims to fix the (de)faults
Proposed makeover for determinations committees tackles concerns over conflicts of interest
Avon CDS holders win payout despite narrow debt auction
With swap volumes outweighing eligible deliverable debt, holders feared contracts could be worthless
Barclays disputes CDS committee decision ahead of auction
Representing the bank, law firm Milbank argues the committee’s approach risks constraining the market and goes against expectations
Bitcoin ETFs drive demand for borrowing in crypto markets
Mismatch between cash and crypto settlement cycles creates pre-funding challenge
Treasury futures super-user switches to swaps
Capital Group’s Anbax fund slashes UST futures holdings in move to alternative rates derivatives
Derivatives trading halved amid CrowdStrike tech outage
With broker screens offline, G3 rates derivatives volumes plunged versus a normal Friday