Foreign exchange
AIMA in bid to stave off imposed global regulation
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Lloyds' HBOS losses highlight flaws in FSA capital measures
With UK banking group Lloyds set to announce heavy 2008 losses later this week, industry observers are turning against plans from the UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) to loosen bank capital requirements.
JP Morgan cuts dividend to build capital reserves
JP Morgan cut its quarterly dividend from 38c to 5c a share yesterday, in a bid to build up $5 billion in additional capital reserves.
FCStone Group increases bad debt provision for energy trading account
FCStone Group expects to incur an additional $60m to $80m pre-tax bad debt provision in connection with previously-reported losses on a significant energy trading account.
Global carbon trading to grow by 20% in 2009
The global carbon market will see a 20% boost in volume in 2009, according to the latest figures from Point Carbon.
Bernanke: Public-private partnership required to value toxic assets
The involvement of both the public and private sectors is essential to accurately value illiquid assets before public funds are used to remove them from dealer balance sheets, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke claimed yesterday.
UK Banking Act comes into force
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Liffe blames regulatory uncertainty for lack of CDS clearing
Despite being the only firm to launch a centralised clearing platform for credit default swap (CDS) index trades, London-based derivatives exchange NYSE Liffe has yet to clear any trades, a situation it blames on the uncertain regulatory landscape in…
LCH.Clearnet bid sparks conflict-of-interest debate
A proposal by a consortium of major derivatives dealers to acquire London-based clearing house LCH.Clearnet has led to suggestions that banks becoming intimately involved in the clearing process could present a conflict of interest.
CAP details expose transatlantic split on capital
Today's news that the US Treasury and other regulators may compel US banks to raise capital levels puts them even more at odds with UK and European overseers, who have downplayed the need for more capital in recent weeks.
Trichet: Eurozone CCP will help improve oversight
European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet backed a central counterparty (CCP) for clearing credit default swap (CDS) trades in the eurozone today, in a speech that also called for banker compensation to be linked to avoiding excessive leverage.
LSE may join LCH.Clearnet bid consortium
The London Stock Exchange (LSE) today confirmed that it is "looking closely" at joining the consortium of financial institutions bidding for London-based clearing house LCH.Clearnet.
Fraud wreckage emerging at an alarming rate
Editor's blog
Crunch time for Solvency II
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More MCAs needed to meet equity derivatives targets
Participants in the equity derivatives market say a significant amount of work remains to be done on standardising documentation before it can meet regulators' electronic processing targets for over-the-counter trades.
More ARS writedowns still to come
At least 184 auction-rate securities (ARS) holders are continuing to mark their notes to par almost a year on from the implosion of the $330 billion market - meaning further writedowns are inevitable, a new report has concluded.
Bank of Japan steps up support for corporates
The Bank of Japan has expanded its programme of supporting corporate debt, in an attempt to shore up the country's rapidly contracting economy.
US Wrap: Mid-week freeze
With tumbling equity markets pushing the S&P index down 4%, yesterday turned out to be the right day for no issuance in the US market. Despite continued volatility, the past week has seen reverse convertibles making a comeback: the poster child of US…
SEC charges Stanford with fraud
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged R Allen Stanford with orchestrating a fraud of a "shocking magnitude" via his asset management and broker-dealer advisory companies under the Stanford Group name.
Crunch time for Solvency II
The top European Union institutions are embroiled in trilateral negotiations in Brussels to agree on a draft text of the Solvency II insurance directive before the April 2 deadline.
MBIA lances structured finance from municipal business
Monoline insurer MBIA has split itself into two, creating a new business focused solely on US public finance bond insurance while siphoning off its festering structured product commitments into a separate legal entity.
FSA names chief operating officer
Mark Norris has joined the UK Financial Services Authority as chief operating officer.
SGCIB reshuffles management team to integrate divisions
Société Générale Corporate and Investment Banking (SGCIB) has reorganised its management structure as part of a move to integrate its capital markets activities.
Pillars II and III stalled in global Basel II implementation
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