Industry news


Date: Oct 29, 2012

October 29, 2012: TOM gears up for a bigger slice of Liffe; SEC Weighs Bringing Back Fractions in Stock Prices; NYSE Euronext to Shutter Carbon-Trading Exchange in Europe

Netherlands-based trading platform The Order Machine has its sights set on competing against a popular NYSE Liffe index option contract. More than a decade after decimalization, the SEC is reconsidering that decision and is contemplating a return to quarters and eighths for some products. NYSE Euronext plans to turn out the lights on its Paris-based BlueNext carbon exchange, as volumes dwindle in that marketplace.

First Read

U.S. Stock Market to Close as Hurricane Sandy Nears New York
Bloomberg
The U.S. securities industry canceled all stock trading as a precaution to protect workers as Hurricane Sandy barrels toward New York City, the Securities and Exchange Commission said in a statement.
jlne.ws/S6Ixkd

**** The bad news is there are a lot of flight cancellations and problems for travellers to FIA’s EXPO in Chicago. The good news, if you are in Chicago and want to upgrade your hotel, there are now some rooms available.

++++

CFTC ‘way off’ in estimates of position limit costs
Peter Madigan – Risk magazine
Regulators drastically understated the cost of federal position limit rules in US commodity markets, with some large dealers spending more than seven times the sum estimated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
jlne.ws/S6IzII

**** Estimates are guesses. Bad estimates are bad guesses.

++++

The Perils of Feeding a Bloated Financial Industry
New York Times
Powerful new research looks into reasons for the financial sector’s vast growth before the financial crisis — and at the social impact.
jlne.ws/S6IzIR

**** Do we need some exercise or exorcise?

++++

Orc seamlessly integrates ultra-low latency deterministic market data feeds from NovaSparks
Orc, a leading provider of technology and services for the global financial industry, and NovaSparks, a deterministic FPGA market data company, today announced an alliance for Orc clients to use high speed FPGA data feeds from NovaSparks.
jlne.ws/S6IxAM

++++

Actant: ExStream HitLift sets a new benchmark in execution trigger response times
Actant today announced the release of its new HitLift options trading application. A member of the ExStream product family, HitLift is an innovative low latency execution management system, highly optimised to meet the demands faced in today’s rapidly changing market conditions. HitLift is already proving its worth on markets where sub 100 microsecond response times are crucial to capturing marketable order flow or capitalising on volatile underlying markets. Clients trading index options on EUREX and ARCA for example have confirmed impressively high order-to-execution ratios.
jlne.ws/S7b2NR

++++

Analysis: As ICE threat melts, ‘long, dull’ CME grain hours draw fire
Mark Weinraub and Tom Polansek – Reuters
CME Group’s bid to cement its dominance in grain markets with longer trading hours may be backfiring, with some traders reducing activity and others including major merchant Bunge calling for a return to a shorter day.
jlne.ws/S6IAfP

**** Time, Price and Opportunity.

++++

CME’s Volume ‘Disaster’ Due to Macro Woes: Exec
By Reuters
The decline in trading on CME Group Inc’s futures exchanges this year is more the result of a sluggish economy and uncertainty over tax policy rather than regulatory changes affecting the futures industry, CME’s executive chairman said on Thursday.
jlne.ws/S6IxRn

***** Let us not forget MF Global and Peregrine, as much as we want to.

++++

MF Global ghosts still haunt its creditors
Tom Osborn – Financial News
Last Halloween proved to be a more ghoulish experience than usual for firms in the global futures markets. After a month of teetering on the edge and a failure to find a buyer, MF Global, led by former chief executive Jon Corzine, became the largest bankrupt US brokerage when it collapsed on October 31 with estimated listed assets of $41bn. In the US, the firm remains under investigation for the misappropriation of more than $1bn in client funds.
jlne.ws/S6IAwj

**** It is not just creditors it haunts.

++++

Asia regulators see brokers take the flak
Dan Barnes – Financial News
A series of damaging trading glitches has led regulators globally to review a range of electronic trading practices, with supervisors in Asia-Pacific outlining some of the most stringent restrictions that would see brokers bear the burden of responsibility. While some are concerned by the tough proposals, others say they do not go far enough.
jlne.ws/S6Iy7S

++++

JPMorgan remorse on Bear Stearns prompts question: Were crisis mergers worth it?
Washington Post
Four years ago, in an attempt to save the nation’s crumbling financial system, the government played matchmaker by pushing ailing institutions into the arms of healthier rivals. JPMorgan Chase scooped up the remnants of failed financial giant Bear Stearns at the behest of the Federal Reserve. Bank of America picked up crippled brokerage Merrill Lynch with billions in taxpayer dollars.
jlne.ws/S6IAws

**** No, not with 20/20 hindsight. No.

++++

Chicago Confidential: Lehman Brothers bankruptcy examiner believes lessons not heeded
Chicago Tribune
The lessons of Lehman Brothers, Chicagoan Anton Valukas says, haven’t been learned. He would know. As the man charged by the bankruptcy court with getting to the bottom of what caused the largest bankruptcy in history, the Jenner Block chairman and former U.S. attorney in Chicago oversaw more than 250 interviews and the review of about 34 million pages of records about Lehman’s collapse.
jlne.ws/S6Iyoe

**** What lessons?

++++

ETFs take centre stage
Peter Davy – Financial News
As 2012 draws to a close, the European exchange-traded market is preparing itself for a record year of asset growth, shrugging off the concerns of a slow 2011. Investors are increasingly applying new ways to use ETFs, are holding them for longer and are treating them more as a core part of their investment portfolios.
jlne.ws/S6Iyok

**** Investor innovation.

++++

Riskiest places to invest
MSN
LONDON — The world’s markets may believe that the worst of the financial crisis in Europe is over after three turbulent years, but those people who control the purse strings of the world’s businesses are not breathing any easier.
jlne.ws/S6IyEH

++++

Getting Capitalism Back on Its Feet
New York Times
Capitalism — with its basis in free enterprise and private property — can still work, provided warped incentives are corrected and the culture of greed is tempered.
jlne.ws/S6IB3u

++++

MarketsWiki

MarketsWiki Page of the Day
BlueNext
jlne.ws/Se7XyT

People

Richard Chmiel; Silvio Berlusconi; Mark Mahaney; Steve Greenberg

Companies, Organizations and Groups

OptionsCity Software Inc.; BlueNext

Miscellaneous

Upcoming Events

Statistics

30,108,806 pages viewed, 7,186 articles, 149,212 edits
MarketsWiki Statistics

**** We passed the 30 million page view mark on Friday. We have seen 12.5 million page views in 10 months of 2012 so far after seeing 9.6 million page views in all of 2011.

Lead Stories

TOM gears up for a bigger slice of Liffe
Tom Osborn – Financial News
The Order Machine, an alternative Dutch trading venue backed by several high-frequency trading firms, is to launch an attack on one of NYSE Liffe’s most popular index option contracts.
jlne.ws/S6IyVg

SEC Weighs Bringing Back Fractions in Stock Prices
ANDREW ACKERMAN And TELIS DEMOS – WSJ.com
For some stock prices, the new math might look a lot like the old math: Regulators are thinking about bringing back the fraction. The move would at least partly undo an 11-year-old rule that replaced fractions of a dollar in stock prices, like 1/8 and 1/16, with pennies. The idea of that change was to trim investors’ trading costs: One-cent increments can lead to narrower gaps between the prices at which brokers buy and sell shares—potentially reducing their opportunity to shave off profits.
jlne.ws/S6IyVq

***JK: Odds are 5 ⅜ to 1 ¼ that it happens.

NYSE Euronext to Shutter Carbon-Trading Exchange in Europe
Jacob Bunge – Dow Jones Newswires
NYSE Euronext (NYX) will close a European carbon-trading exchange following a decline in trading and a series of scandals that rocked the region’s emissions market in recent years. Paris-based BlueNext SA, majority-owned by the Big Board parent, will cease operations Dec. 5, according to a spokesman for the market.
jlne.ws/S6IBk2

Chinese banks flee London’s tough rules
Daniel Schäfer in London – FT.com
China’s largest state-owned banks are moving big chunks of their European business to Luxembourg as they seek to escape tougher regulation in the City of London.
jlne.ws/S6IzbP

MF Global Couldn’t Keep Track of Funds
AARON LUCCHETTI and JULIE STEINBERG – WSJ.com
Employees at MF Global couldn’t keep track of exactly how much money it had at any given moment, even before the company began to wobble, according to Mr. Hughey’s email. Officials had been trying to fix the problem for months.
jlne.ws/S6IBAt

Brent, Nymex Aren’t Going Away as Oil Benchmarks
KONSTANTIN ROZHNOV – WSJ.com
Brent and Nymex crude are likely to retain their status as the world’s two key oil benchmarks for the foreseeable future, despite concerns about their reliability that have prompted calls for a more accurate pricing measure.
jlne.ws/S6IBAz

Banks pushed for next Libor settlement
Patrick Jenkins and Brooke Masters in London – FT.com
US and UK enforcers are pushing to agree multinational settlements with at least one and possibly two more banks by the end of the year over allegations they tried to fix Libor and other interbank interest rates, people familiar with the negotiations said.
jlne.ws/S6IBAC

Eurozone hedge funds set for 12% contraction
William Hutchings – Financial News
The eurozone hedge fund industry is set to enter a period of contraction, with assets falling by up to 12.5% over the next four years amid regulatory restrictions and unsatisfactory returns.
jlne.ws/S6IBQU

Greek Editor Arrested After Publishing List of Swiss Bank Accounts
New York Times
Kostas Vaxevanis, the editor and owner of Hot Doc magazine, said the list contained the names of 2,000 Greeks who had possibly been evading taxes.
jlne.ws/S6IBQX

Regulatory

Schapiro: No Rift Among Regulators On Volcker Rule
MarketWatch
WASHINGTON – Regulators working on a one-year-old so-called Volcker Rule proposal that would prohibit big banks from trading stocks and derivatives with their own money have some differences of opinion but there isn’t a rift forming among agencies, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro told reporters Friday.
jlne.ws/S6IBR4

Merkel urges more far-reaching financial regulation
Reuters via Yahoo! News
BERLIN – German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged the world’s top economies to push ahead with further financial regulation, saying that not enough had been achieved so far. The global financial crisis has prompted an overhaul of regulation in almost every part of the financial system from over-the-counter derivatives to bank capital requirements.
jlne.ws/S6ICob

CFTC’s Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight Issues Time-Limited No-Action Relief to Swap Dealers and Major Swap Participants Regarding Certain Recordkeeping Obligations
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight (DSIO) today announced the issuance of time-limited no-action relief for swap dealers (SDs) and major swap participants (MSPs) concerning certain recordkeeping obligations under Part 23 of the Commission’s Regulations.
jlne.ws/S6IEMD

[Japan] FSA publishes Weekly Review No.18
jlne.ws/S6IEMH

General Regulation of the AMF – Book II – Issuers and financial disclosure (Last amended on 27 September 2012)
jlne.ws/fawlrp

Exchanges & Trading Facilities

NYSE to Remain Open for Trading While Physical Trading Floor and New York Building Close in Accordance with Actions Taken By City and State Officials
jlne.ws/S6ICUZ

CME Group to Close U.S. Equity Index Futures and Options on Futures Monday in Coordination with the U.S. Equities Market
jlne.ws/S6IF3g

IntercontinentalExchange Announces Market Update
jlne.ws/S6ICVc

BOX Options Exchange Closed Monday, October 29, 2012 Due To Hurricane Sandy
As a result of Hurricane Sandy approaching the New York City area BOX Options Exchange will be closed on Monday, October 29, 2012.
jlne.ws/S6IDbx

CBOE Announces Exchange Closures For Monday, October 29
jlne.ws/S6IDbD

The NASDAQ Stock Market And Other NASDAQ OMX-Owned U.S. Exchanges Will Be Closed On Monday And Pending Confirmation On Tuesday
jlne.ws/S6IDrX

OneChicago Will Be Closed For Trading For Monday, October 29, 2012.
jlne.ws/S6IDs3

Direct Edge Trading Notice #12-45: Markets Closed On Monday, October 29th
jlne.ws/S6IFjO

Business Insider and NYSE Euronext Celebrate New York City’s Digital Community and “2012 Silicon Alley 100”
jlne.ws/S6IFA7

[CBOE] Rule Change Relating to Position and Exercise Limits for EEM Options
jlne.ws/S6IFAf

ISE Weekly Listings October 26, 2012
jlne.ws/S6IDIB

[CBOE] Trader E-News
jlne.ws/S6IFQC

The WhiteWave Foods Company Celebrates Initial Public Offering and First Day of Trading on the New York Stock Exchange
jlne.ws/S6IDZ0

TOM MTF Statistics Week 43 , 2012
jlne.ws/S6IFQN

[OSE] Concerning October 29, 2012 OSE DJIA Futures Night Session Trading
jlne.ws/S6IDZb

NZX Makes Successful Changeover To New Trading Technology
Today NZX successfully launched its X-stream trading platform, heralding a new era for New Zealand markets. The go-live is the result of an intensive, seven-month project involving NZX, US-based technology supplier NASDAQ OMX and market participants.
jlne.ws/S6IDZh

NZX Advises Shorter Market Hours For Christmas, New Year 2012
jlne.ws/S6IEfA

Hedge Funds & Managed Futures

AP1 outlines bold approach to hedge funds
Harriet Agnew – Financial News
Martin Källström, the portfolio manager responsible for hedge funds at AP1, believes that the Skr221bn ($33bn) Swedish pension fund’s approach to hedge funds is very different to that of most other investors in the sector.
jlne.ws/S6IGnG

Paulson Fund Losses Prompt Some Investors to Pull Out
CNBC via Yahoo! Finance
Fed up with lagging returns at the hedge fund, investors large and small are opting to either reduce their capital at risk or yank it entirely by year’s end.
jlne.ws/S6IGnM

Dymon launches pvt equity fund with Temasek unit’s backing
Reuters via Yahoo! Finance
Dymon Asia Capital is branching out to the private equity world, launching a fund with backing from a unit of Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings, a company email obtained by Reuters shows, indicating an uncommon move by a hedge fund.
jlne.ws/S6IGnP

K.K.R. Swings to a Profit for 3rd Quarter
MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED – NYTimes.com
As the markets have improved, so have the fortunes of private equity firms like Kohlberg Kravis Roberts
The investment firm said on Friday that it earned $509.9 million in its third quarter, swinging to a profit from a loss the same time last year as the value of its holdings improved. That amounts to 69 cents a share.
jlne.ws/S6IGnS

Hedge Funds Drawn to Fannie-Freddie Risk-Sharing Plan: Mortgages
Bloomberg
Bond buyers are vying with insurers to strike deals with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as their regulator seeks to draw private capital to the government- dominated mortgage market.
jlne.ws/S6IGnT

Bubble trouble in junk bonds
CNN Money
As yield-hungry investors continue to jump head first into junk bonds, experts are warning that a potential bubble may be forming.
jlne.ws/S6IGE8

The Evolving Role of the CDO
Greg MacSweeney – Wall Street & Technology
John Bottega, who has been chief data officer at Citi, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and now Bank of America, says the role of data in the enterprise is increasing.
jlne.ws/S6IGEf

Buyout bosses fear pension regulation
Dan Dunkley – Financial News
Further regulatory assault on the pensions industry is the newest headache for buyout bosses who fear that even tougher fundraising conditions lie ahead.
jlne.ws/S6IGEk

Speculators Reduce Wagers as Annual Advance Erased: Commodities
Bloomberg
Speculators lowered bullish wagers on commodities for the third straight week, the longest streak since April, as prices erased this year’s gain on mounting concern about slowing economic growth.
jlne.ws/S6IGEp

[Video] European Hedge Fund Reality Check
Bloomberg
Bloomberg’s Nathaniel Baker talks about the European debt crisis and hedge funds. He speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “Money Moves.”
jlne.ws/S6IHIc

Systematic Alpha Futures Fund Wins HFMWeek US Performance Award
Systematic Alpha Futures Fund, Ltd., managed by the New York based CTA Systematic Alpha Management, LLC, has won the HFMWeek US Performance Award 2012 in the following category: Managed Futures Under $250m.
jlne.ws/S6IGUG

SIFMA Issues Quarterly Government Securities Issuance And Rates Forecast For 4Q 2012
jlne.ws/S6IHIu

CFTC.Gov Commitments Of Traders Reports Update
jlne.ws/S6IHbo

Banks & Brokers

UBS to cut up to 10,000 jobs: source
Reuters via Yahoo! News
NEW YORK – Swiss bank UBS AG is expected to cut up to 10,000 jobs, or 16 percent of its workforce, as it contends with shrinking revenue and rising capital requirements, a source familiar with the matter said, in what would be one of the largest layoffs by a bank since the financial crisis.
jlne.ws/S6IHYX

Citigroup Pays Fine and Fires Star Technology Analyst
New York Times
Citigroup paid a $2 million fine and fired two employees after authorities accused the bank of improperly disclosing confidential information to media outlets about YouTube’s earnings and Facebook’s initial public offering.
jlne.ws/S6IK6Y

Lloyds dips toe in base-salary-only pool
Lisa Pollack | FT Alphaville
Lloyds Banking Group has launched a scheme that scraps all incentives linked to product sales in the latest attempt to clean up bad practices that have been blamed for causing mis-selling scandals.
jlne.ws/S6IK79

Credit Suisse Stocks Chief Jain Said to Move to Hedge-Fund Unit
Bloomberg
Credit Suisse Group AG equities chief Bob Jain will move to a job overseeing a unit that includes in-house hedge funds and be replaced by Timothy O’Hara, two people with knowledge of the decision said.
jlne.ws/S6IIfo

Goldman Sachs Said to Hire Ex-Deutsche Bank Credit Trader Pappas
Lisa Abramowicz, Mary Childs and Matthew Leising – Bloomberg
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) is hiring former Deutsche Bank AG (DBK) banker Nicholas Pappas to head a distressed and high-yield debt team after the Wall Street firm reported higher revenue from fixed-income trading.
jlne.ws/S6IIfs

Goldman Will Be Open For Business Despite Being In A Mandatory Evacuation Zone
Business Insider
As Hurricane Sandy churns up the east coast, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has issued a mandatory evacuation of in Zone A, which is where Goldman Sachs’ 200 West Street headquarters is located.
jlne.ws/S6IIfv

Nomura Posts Q2 Profit On Trading Gain – Update
RTTNews.com
Financial services firm Nomura Holdings Inc. (NMR) Monday reported a profit for the second quarter as well as the first half of the year, as revenues climbed, benefiting from a significant increase in net trading gain.
jlne.ws/S6IKDS

(Nearly) free at last: A new opportunity at Schwab
Provo Daily Herald
Discount broker Charles Schwab has opened a new kind of office in Dripping Springs, Texas. Don’t worry if you didn’t hear about it. I only noticed because that’s where I live.
jlne.ws/S6IIvT

JPMorgan Math Nonsense to MetLife in CPI Spat: Argentina Credit
Bloomberg
The alleged data rigging by Argentina that cost inflation-linked bondholders $7 billion and earned the nation a rebuke from the International Monetary Fund is now turning MetLife Inc. against its banker.
jlne.ws/S6IKE4

Clearing & Settlement

Clearing rules need integrated approach to portability
Dan Barnes – Financial News
Market participants fear there is some way to go before European rules on the safe separation and movement of investment firms’ assets from a bankrupt broker can be met.
jlne.ws/S6IKUr

DTCC investment in EuroCCP tops E100m
Tim Cave – Financial News
EuroCCP, Europe’s largest cash equities clearing house, has received a fresh capital injection of nearly E5m from its US parent the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, bringing total investment in the five year-old clearer to more than E100m, according to analysis by Financial News.
jlne.ws/S6IIMm

CME Group Clearing Advisory: Daily European Naphtha CIF NWE (Platts) Futures on CME Clearport
jlne.ws/S6IIMs

Indexes & Products

Nasdaq ETF order-type proposal raises questions
Reuters
Nasdaq OMX Group has proposed a new order type for exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that may comfort investors who feel there is not enough transparency in the pricing of some securities.
jlne.ws/P8r0Kl

WisdomTree Q3 Net Triples To A Record
IndexUniverse.com via Yahoo! Finance
WisdomTree Investments, the New York-based ETF firm known for its funds that screen securities for dividend and earnings, posted a threefold increase in third-quarter net income from the same year-earlier quarter that was built on strong inflows, including those into its latest strategy.
jlne.ws/S6IJ2O

FTSE Wins AsianInvestor 2012 Best Tradable Index Provider Award
AsianInvestor has announced the winners of the 2012 Service Provider Awards, selecting FTSE as the Best Tradable Index Provider. The award recognizes FTSE’s achievements over the last 12 months providing investors in Asia with the most suitable tradable index solutions.
jlne.ws/S6IJ2U

Technology

Nomura Selects Fidessa’s Trading Platform To Support Global Derivatives Operation
Fidessa group plc, provider of high-performance trading, investment management and information solutions for the world’s financial community, has today announced that Nomura has selected its trading platform to support its global futures and options trading activity.
jlne.ws/S6ILrt

Calypso Technology Launches Basel III Solution For Liquidity Management
Enables Banks To Address Liquidity Requirements Mandated By Basel III – Integrated Trading And Risk Management System Packages All Trade, Static And Reference Data With Liquidity Monitoring And Reporting Capabilities
jlne.ws/S6ILrB

Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation Pioneer Offshore Fund Automation In A New Collaboration With Calastone
jlne.ws/S6IJjo

Broadridge Launches Unified Cash And Stock Reconciliations, The Latest Innovation For Operational Control – Solution To Enhance Risk Management And Drive Efficiency
jlne.ws/S6IJjy

Numerix Extends Its Windows Azure Solutions to Meet Financial Services Industry Needs for Cross-asset Valuation and …
Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance
Numerix , a leading provider of cross-asset analytics for derivatives valuations and risk management and a Microsoft Global Alliance Partner, today announced plans to enable additional Numerix solutions for use with Microsoft’s cloud platform, Windows Azure.
jlne.ws/S6ILHY

Enforcement

Ex-UBS Trader Takes Stand for First Time at Fraud Trial
Bloomberg
Kweku Adoboli, the former UBS AG trader accused of causing the largest unauthorized trading loss in British history, broke down crying moments after taking the stand for the first time at his London trial.
jlne.ws/S6IJzY

Exclusive: Massachusetts’ regulator eyes other firms on research
Reuters via Yahoo! News
BOSTON – Massachusetts’ top securities regulator said on Friday that his office is looking into whether top Wall Street investment banks in addition to Citigroup have leaked research in violation of state law on how to share this kind of information.
jlne.ws/S6ILYt

SEC Charges Denver-Based Insurance Executive with Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged an insurance company CEO with insider trading based on confidential information he obtained in advance of a private investment firm acquiring a significant stake in a Denver-based oil and gas company.
jlne.ws/S6IJQu

SEC Charges Silicon Valley Executive for Role in Galleon Insider Trading Scheme
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a former senior executive at a Silicon Valley technology company for illegally tipping convicted hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam with nonpublic information that allowed the Galleon hedge funds to make nearly $1 million in illicit profits.
jlne.ws/S6ILYJ

CFTC Orders Illinois Resident Joshua T.J. Russo to Pay More than $1.8 Million in Restitution and Penalties for Futures and Options Fraud and Unauthorized Trading
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today issued an order filing and settling charges against Joshua T.J. Russo of Chicago, Ill., for fraudulently soliciting at least one customer to participate in a fictitious commodity futures and options pool, engaging in unauthorized trading, and issuing false account statements.
jlne.ws/SdFTM4

National Futures Association Enforcement and Registration Actions
Forex Club LLC and Peter Tatarnikov
jlne.ws/S6IMM7

Former Deloitte vice chairman get 21 months for insider trading
Ameet Sachdev – Chicago Tribune
Former Deloitte & Touche vice chairman Thomas Flanagan was sentenced to 21 months in prison for trading in the stocks of the accounting firm’s clients prior to significant corporate news.
jlne.ws/S6IMMb

IRS Pays $38 Million in Whistleblower Case
LAURA SAUNDERS – WSJ.com
The Internal Revenue Service has awarded an anonymous whistleblower $38 million for information leading to the recovery of between $127 million and $254 million in corporate taxes, according to the whistleblower’s attorney.
jlne.ws/S6IMfe

UK’s Financial Services Authority Fines And Bans Martin Edward Rigney Of Topps Rogers Financial Management
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined Martin Rigney of Topps Rogers £117,330 and banned him from performing any function in relation to any regulated activity in the financial services industry. Rigney was a Partner and the only adviser working at Topps Rogers.
jlne.ws/S6IMvu

[ASIC] Adelaide financial adviser banned for three years
jlne.ws/S6IN2G

[ASIC] Apple Investment Company Pty Ltd banned for five years
jlne.ws/S6IMvD

B.C. Securities Commission’s Criminal Investigations Team and Vancouver Police arrest Vancouver man for fraud
jlne.ws/S6IMvK

Environmental & Energy

ICE Futures Europe Announces Launch of New Emissions Contracts for UK Auctions
IntercontinentalExchange, a leading operator of global markets and clearing houses, today announced that ICE Futures Europe will introduce two new emissions allowance contracts in its capacity as the designated platform for hosting auctions under the EU Emissions Trading System on behalf of the UK Government’s Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC).
jlne.ws/S6INjc

Federal Environment Minister Peter Altmaier visits EEX – Focus on requirements from the energy turnaround and the first German CO2 auction for the third trading period
jlne.ws/S6INjk

EEX: First German “Early Auction” generates EUR 7.54 per EUA – First EU Aviation Allowances auction to be held on 31 October – EUA spot trading on the secondary market for phase III to be launched on 29 October
jlne.ws/S6IPrg

Asia-Pacific

Chi-X Japan ups ante with rule change
Tim Cave – Financial News
The supremacy of Japan’s national stock exchange is set to face a stiffer challenge from alternative trading venues, with the decision to exempt one of its main rivals from a local rule that had limited its ability to compete.
jlne.ws/S6INzQ

Billions in Hidden Riches for Family of Chinese Leader
New York Times via Yahoo! Finance
It is unclear how much Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, who has staked a position as a populist and a reformer, knows about the $2.7 billion in assets his family has amassed.
jlne.ws/S6IPrq

Announcement Concerning Merger, Etc. Of Tokyo Stock Exchange Group, Inc. And Osaka Securities Exchange Co., Ltd. – Toward Establishing Japan Exchange Group, Inc.
jlne.ws/S6IPrr

Osaka Securities Exchange Financial Statements 2nd Quarter, FY2012
jlne.ws/S6INQf

Frontier Markets

Has the Time Come for a Kabul Stock Exchange?
Time Magazine
Two young Afghans are working hard to start up an Afghan bourse. It may be one way to goose a moribund economy.
jlne.ws/S6IPHX

Emerging markets boom for banks
Farah Khalique – Financial News
Emerging markets are raising debt at an unprecedented rate, earning record fees for investment banks. Between January this year and October 21, corporations, financial institutions and governments raised $370bn worth of bonds, up 20% on the same period last year, according to data from Thomson Reuters, which tracks 167 countries.
jlne.ws/S6IO6O

In a troubled world, Brazil still has good options
David Marsh, MarketWatch
As a result of the financial crisis, the so-called emerging economies have become more stable during the last five years, while the industrialized countries on the whole have become less so. The implications for a country like Brazil, an economic colossus with 190 million people and a gross domestic product that will rival Germany’s in coming years, are striking.
jlne.ws/Q1yDUu

African bonds take the spotlight
Shanny Basar in New York – Financial News
Investors have continued to plough money into African bond deals this year as they search for yield outside mainstream economies.
jlne.ws/S7fDPU

South Africa reaches ‘tipping point’
William Wallis and Andrew England in Cape Town – FT.com
South Africa is at a “tipping point” and the power of the African National Congress will decline amid public “despondency” if the ruling party fails to renew itself according to Kgalema Motlanthe, the country’s deputy president.
jlne.ws/UZ9V8d

DFSA Promotes Continuous Professional Development
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) celebrated, today, the achievement of sixteen (16) of its employees who recently achieved the Advanced Diploma in Anti-Money Laundering (AML) from the International Compliance Association (UK).
jlne.ws/TPAR4x

Keynote Address By Ybhg Datuk Ranjit Ajit Singh, Chairman, Securities Commission Malaysia At The 17th Malaysian Capital Market Summit Today
jlne.ws/XKuWTD

Malawi Stock Exchange Weekly Trading Report
jlne.ws/Pg8waY

Miscellaneous

Boardroom rewards face new scrutiny
Kiel Porter – Financial News
Buyout executives and their portfolio company managers are now engaged in more contract renegotiations than ever, forcing a rethink of incentive packages.
jlne.ws/RrHonz

Read article

Contact Contango on

+44 (0)7931 372586

or email