Articles by Ben St. Clair
Green knights? Banks step into struggling carbon credit markets
Clearer global standards and a new exchange may attract dealer entry, but supply and demand challenges remain
How banks are adapting to all-powerful pod funds
Growth of multi-manager funds such as Citadel, Millennium and Balyasny has forced dealers to switch tactics in attempt to preserve profits
Traders eye negative CDS-bond basis
Changed market dynamic can be profitable for those firms able to capture it
Hedge funds push for transparency in credit determinations
Proposals include more disclosure around meetings and detailed rulings of credit events
Voluntary carbon markets need to be ‘cut a bit of slack’
Catherine McGuinness says excessive focus on greenwashing in fledgling market could undermine its development
Judge hits pause on CDS auction-rigging lawsuit
Proceedings now wait for New York court ruling on a separate 2015 settlement’s applicability
Term SOFR derivatives creep into US fund holdings
Global Atlantic shows sizeable swaps position against the new benchmark as other managers ease into trading
The unknown risk on the flip side of the basis trade
US mutual funds have amassed record notionals in Treasury futures that in some cases exceed their AUM
Banks scrutinised for offloading deal contingent risks on to funds
Critics say practice could lead to disclosure of sensitive client data
Buy side unconvinced of corporate bond streaming benefits
Managers see limited utility of streamed prices in the once OTC-only asset class
Better tech brings threat of two-speed trading in fixed income
Smaller asset managers may get left behind as automation allows the big players to prosper
US funds add to single-name CDS positions
Counterparty Radar: Corporate positions exceed SSA contracts for first time on record in Q2
Could intraday FX swaps help reduce settlement risk?
New swap platform hopes to ease funding pains, but can it promote more use of PvP?
Vue gives private credit another reason to shun CDSs
Lenders prefer to hold risk themselves and recent issues suggest incompatibility with private markets
PGIM nearly eliminates credit options book
Counterparty Radar: Pimco also exits space in Q2 as US funds show record low positions in the instrument
Market eyes emerging market CDS index expansion
Participants hope changes will help transform single-name volumes into greater index activity
JPM’s new-look credit unit primed for market uncertainty
Talking Heads 2023: Leaders of merged business explain plans for new equity-credit combo, and why bank’s “biggest opportunity” lies in direct lending
Why credit default committees are a turnoff for the buy side
With high costs and little to gain from participating, investment firms seem content to leave the legal work to the banks
Shall we compare thee to a multilateral trading venue?
As regulators confirm that perimeter guidance applies to tech firms, the focus shifts to enforcement
Credit Suisse CDS blip spotlights obligations list overhaul
Isda began work on updating reference instruments before banking crisis erupted
Invesco is first US mutual fund to trade €STR swaptions
Counterparty Radar: Trades were some of just a handful of €STR swaptions to hit the market this year
PGIM trades reinforce Citi’s credit options stronghold
Counterparty Radar: US retail funds’ aggregate notional drops to lowest levels since late 2020 in Q1
Hedge funds ease off profitable China FX options trade
Some still hold positions but an appreciating renminbi may make them less profitable for now
EU’s late CDS transparency push triggers trader fears
Leaked proposal to shoehorn public disclosure of CDS into Mifir placates Esma, but alarms traders