Industry news

October 24, 2012: Exchanges Retreat on Trading Tools; Tradeweb launches ETF platform; NYSE chief laments complex markets

Fund managers and regulators are displeased with US exchanges over certain order types that they say creates an unfair disadvantage for their clients. Platform operator Tradeweb launches a new service that provides multiple price quotes for ETF products to traders. NYSE Euronext chief Duncan Niederauer wants a complete review and overhaul of the structure of US financial markets, believing that the system as a whole has become too complex to serve its essential functions.

First Read

Forex For All
I ticked the wrong box yesterday when sending out the JLN Forex newsletter, and delivered a… oh, let’s just call it a “complimentary copy”… to the readers of the John Lothian Newsletter. Hope you all enjoyed it. If not, don’t worry, it wasn’t a super secret plan on our part to begin delivering things regularly to the wrong address. If you did like it and don’t normally get it, you can sign up to get it (and get each day’s FX news) on the JLN Forex blog at www.jlnforex.com/

~ Jon Matte

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U.S. Derivatives Regulator Proposes Rules for Customer Funds
Silla Brush and Matthew Leising – Bloomberg
U.S. derivatives regulators, faulted for poor oversight of failed brokerages MF Global Holdings Ltd. and Peregrine Financial Group Inc., proposed new rules to improve segregation and protection of customer funds.
jlne.ws/TdooLI

***JM: For a great summary and comprehensive collection of information on this topic, visit its new MarketsReformWiki page at jlne.ws/QTCgGI

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As Small Broker Business Model Fails, Wall Street Access Bucks the Trend
Ivy Schmerken – Advanced Trading
Smaller brokerages have been closing shop over the last few weeks as a growing number of these firms surrender to a decline in commissions and weak trading volumes for the third year in a row. ThinkEquity LLC, the San Francisco-based investment bank, said last Thursday its stock-trading business will close, while Oscar Gruss & Son Inc. halted merger-arbitrage operations on Oct. 12. Rodman & Renshaw LLC, which acquired brokerage Hudson Holding Corp. last year, told regulators in a September filing that it didn’t have enough capital and would stop trading, reports Bloomberg News.
jlne.ws/RASLct

**** A leading figure in the futures industry told me yesterday that we are in a trading “depression.” He asked what would the airline industry look like with volumes down more than 20%, and even more in some markets. How do you get out of a trading depression? The deleveraging continues.

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Singapore’s Libor role in the spotlight
Jeremy Grant – FT.com
High up on the South Tower of One Raffles Quay in Singapore’s gleaming central business district, a group of traders at Royal Bank of Scotland used to meet for a 4.30pm conference call. The daily huddle had one purpose, according to one of the men present: to discuss with colleagues in London market conditions in key interest rate derivatives ultimately used to help establish the daily London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor).
jlne.ws/RASLcu

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CFTC still facing tough to-do list
Peter Madigan – Risk magazine
US swap market participants have been waiting more than 500 days for final versions of six proposed Dodd-Frank Act rules by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), with at least a further eight proposed rules also awaiting finalisation, analysis by Risk shows.
jlne.ws/RASLsM

**** Patience is a virtue you can’t swap.

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‘One-stop-HFT-shop’ in European push
Tim Cave – Financial News
Wedbush Securities, a US investment bank and a major supplier of services to the high-frequency trading community, has made its first major push into Europe by joining the London Stock Exchange, in a sign that the battle to win order flow among HFTs is intensifying.
jlne.ws/RASJkQ

**** When was the last time someone had a trading idea at an investment bank?

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Hedge Funds Belt Few Home Runs
GREGORY ZUCKERMAN AND JULIET CHUNG – WSJ.com
They are the few. The proud. The hedge-fund managers making a killing this year. David Tepper’s firm was up about 25% through Friday, partly from a bet Europe will avoid a meltdown. Steve Mandel’s firm gained nearly as much from soaring consumer and technology stocks. Pine River Capital Management rose 30% thanks in part to subprime mortgages, as did Josh Birnbaum’s Tilden Park. And the Barnegat Fund has climbed over 39% with a debt strategy that the manager concedes isn’t for the faint of heart.
jlne.ws/RASJB8

***** Headline writer caught up in excitement over the Tigers-Giants World Series match up.

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Bank layoffs get more ruthless in the gadget-age
MSNBC
In the high-tech, gadget-addicted world of investment banking, layoffs are becoming more complex and brutal as firms try to stop sensitive data leaving with employees.
jlne.ws/RASLsZ

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Focus: Traders thrive while the TASE seeks to recover liquidity
Galen Stops – FOW
Israel’s GDP grew at 12% from $217bn in 2010 to $243bn in 2011 according to figures from the World Bank, economically it is a country on the rise and a recent report showed that hedge fund activity has risen by 162% in the last six years. But despite this, 2012 has not exactly been a vintage year for the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) as the volume of derivatives being traded on its platform has dropped significantly.
jlne.ws/RASJRE

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FN100 Most Influential Women: The Regulators
Financial News
Financial News has published its 2012 list of the most influential women in Europe’s financial markets [ bit.ly/TrDAa5 ]. Here are the profiles of those at the forefront of the regulatory debate.
jlne.ws/RASJRM

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Fitch predicts return of dividend recaps
Ayesha Javed – Financial News
The controversial boom-era practice of dividend recapitalisation is returning, according to ratings agency Fitch, as private equity firms seek alternative ways of returning money to investors in a difficult exit environment.
jlne.ws/RASLJr

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A Leg To Stand On: 2012 Rocktoberfest Chicago
Thursday, 10/25/12, 7pm – 11pm
From A Leg To Stand On:
The annual Hedge Fund Rocktoberfest benefiting A Leg To Stand On (ALTSO) has been recognized as one of the most unique and highly anticipated fundraising events in both the charitable and financial sectors. ALTSO’s signature event unites more than 1,000 leaders from the hedge fund and related financial services communities for a night of rock ‘n roll and acoustic music performed by industry professionals – to help ALTSO treat more children.
ALTSO provides free prosthetic limbs, corrective surgery, orthotic devices and rehabilitative care to children who have lost limbs in traumatic accidents or suffer from congenital limb disabilities. They work in countries where there is a staggering need for orthopedic treatment due to landmines, violence, and most simply – poverty.
jlne.ws/P1Zb1H

Event Tickets:
jlne.ws/cFtVwS

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The Future of FX Options – A Profit & Loss Webinar in association with Bloomberg
Profit & Loss, in association with Bloomberg, will host an audio webinar on the future of the FX options market on October 30 at 11AM EST (3PM UK time). The webinar will look at how the industry can promote the wider use of FX options, with particular emphasis on how end-users can protect themselves in an uncertain and volatile economic environment and how FX options can be used to express a market view.
jlne.ws/TDXf0O

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MarketsWiki.tv

Byron Baldwin of Eurex Discusses OTC Clearing, Portfolio Margining and Individual Segregation
MarketsWiki.tv

Byron Baldwin is senior vice president of buyside relations for Eurex. He moved to New York from Eurex’s London office to in February 2011 in order to promote the firm’s listed products, connectivity for high frequency trading firms, and to promote Eurex’s move into OTC clearing. Baldwin spoke with John Lothian News Editor-at-Large Doug Ashburn about regulatory changes across jurisdictions, mandatory clearing of OTC derivatives, margin and collateral efficiency and Eurex’s individual segregation model.

Watch the video »

MarketsWiki

MarketsWiki Page of the Day
Girls Who Code
jlne.ws/QSMqY3

People

Byron Baldwin; John D. Streich; Carl W. Gilmore; Zachary Ziliak; Karl D. Fruecht; Raymond Desormeaux; Sean Malloy; Mike O’Callaghan; Philip A. Pendergraft

Companies, Organizations and Groups

UBS AG; Girls Who Code; Rosenthal Collins Group LLC; Penson Worldwide Inc.; Goldenberg, Hehmeyer & Co.; Penson Futures

Miscellaneous

Gross Domestic Product; Key economic reports; Inflation-Indexed Treasury Notes

Statistics

29,901,698 pages viewed, 7,179 articles, 149,094 edits
MarketsWiki Statistics

Lead Stories

Exchanges Retreat on Trading Tools
SCOTT PATTERSON And JEAN EAGLESHAM – WSJ.com
The nation’s two largest stock exchanges are facing a backlash by mutual funds and securities regulators for offering trading tools that could harm institutional investors. Following recent complaints by large investment firms that a particular trading-order type is unfair to their clients, NYSE Euronext, owner of the New York Stock Exchange, intends to ask regulators to let it alter the order type that critics say could benefit high-speed trading firms, according to exchange officials.
jlne.ws/RASLJx

Tradeweb launches ETF platform
Chris Flood – FT.com
Tradeweb, the electronic marketplace operator, has launched a new platform for trading European listed exchange traded funds with software that allows clients to request ETF price quotes from multiple dealers and to see their responses on one screen.
jlne.ws/RASK8a

NYSE chief laments complex markets
Shanny Basar in New York – Financial News
Duncan Niederauer, chief executive of exchange operator NYSE Euronext, has called for a wholesale review of US market structure, after reaching the conclusion that equity markets have become too complex to fulfil their basic function.
jlne.ws/RASK8e

***** I totally agree.

Swaps Users Granted Grace Period to Clear Trades, Gensler Says
Matthew Leising – Bloomberg
Swaps-market participants will have a grace period before trades are required to be cleared, settling confusion over a rule that will begin early next year, said Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Gary Gensler.
jlne.ws/RASM03

SEC’s Schapiro eyes ways to rein in fast traders
Market Watch
Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro on Tuesday floated a series of possible regulations the agency could impose to rein in high-speed traders.
jlne.ws/RASKoG

Pimco COO blasts financial culture
Market Watch
Financial services companies forgot that its main role is to serve clients, said one of the industry’s top executives at a conference in New York Tuesday. In the early 2000s, the industry forgot that its core role was to serve clients and seemed to focus on profit above all else, said Douglas Hodge, chief operating officer at Pimco Investment Management Co.
jlne.ws/RASKoJ

Corzine Asks Judge to Toss MF Global Fraud Lawsuit
Dow Jones
Lawyers for former MF Global Holdings Ltd. Chief Executive Jon Corzine are asking a federal judge to toss a civil fraud lawsuit accusing him of misleading investors about the risky bets the futures firm was taking before its collapse a year ago.
jlne.ws/RASKoK

**** Corzine’s buys 50,000 shares of MFG in the months leading up to the collapse and this is the proof he was not involved in fraudulent activity. Seems like a cheap hedge to me.

Judge dismisses MF Global employee lawsuit on firings
Ann Saphir – Reuters
A judge on Tuesday dismissed claims MF Global’s trustees fired employees without proper notice but left the door open for former employees to file an amended complaint against the bankrupt brokerage’s parent company.
jlne.ws/RASKoN

U.S. regulator intervenes in Conoco battle with MF Global trustee
Reuters
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Monday won court approval to intervene in a $205 million dispute between oil major ConocoPhillips and the bankruptcy trustee for MF Global Inc.
jlne.ws/RASMwS

French Minister: Financial Transaction Tax Will Bring in Over EUR10 Billion
Dow Jones
The financial transaction tax, backed by 11 countries in the European Union, would probably raise over EUR10 billion, French European Affairs Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said Tuesday, in a first, rough estimate of the measure.
jlne.ws/RASMNi

Regulatory

Argentina Plans Regulatory Overhaul to Spur Investments
Bloomberg
The Merval index fell the most in 11 months as Argentina’s plan to overhaul securities rules and force insurers to spend more on industrial and infrastructure projects fueled concern about government intervention.
jlne.ws/RASMNn

USS joins chorus of pension reform critics
Sophie Baker – Financial News
The chief executive of the second-largest pension scheme in the UK has blasted proposed changes to the main framework for pensions in Europe, warning they would push even its resources and funding levels to the limit.
jlne.ws/RASMNu

CFTC Announces Public Meeting of the Technology Advisory Committee
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announces that on Tuesday, October 30, 2012, the CFTC’s Technology Advisory Committee (the “TAC” or “Committee”) will hold a public meeting at the Hilton Chicago, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The meeting will focus on three significant issues facing the futures and swaps industries as the Commission continues to finalize rules under the Dodd-Frank Act.
jlne.ws/RASKFt

**** I will be there most of the day, but have to moderate a clearing panel for my friends at Sungard in the afternoon.

Statement Of Support: Enhancements For The Protection Of Customers And Customer Funds, CFTC Chairman Gary Gensler
jlne.ws/RASNAT

Concurring Statement Regarding The Proposed Customer Protection Rulemaking, CFTC Commissioner Jill E. Sommers
jlne.ws/RASN3T

Concurring Statement Of CFTC Commissioner Scott D. O’Malia Regarding The Proposed Customer, Protection Rulemaking
jlne.ws/RASN42

CFTC Meeting Scheduled for October 25, 2012, Has Been Cancelled
jlne.ws/RASN47

CFTC’s Gensler: Derivatives Transparency By 2013
MarketWatch
The public will benefit from real-time reporting for the $650 trillion global derivatives market by year-end, the nation’s commodity futures regulator said Tuesday.
jlne.ws/RASNRp

CFTC Chairman Gary Gensler’s Address At The Securities Industry And Financial Markets Association’s 2012 Annual Meeting
Good Morning. Tim, I appreciate that kind introduction. I want to thank the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association for the invitation to speak at today’s annual meeting.
jlne.ws/RASNRu

Keynote Address At The National Society Of Compliance Professionals National Meeting By SEC Commissioner Daniel M. Gallagher
jlne.ws/RASNkv

SIFMA President & CEO Tim Ryan Remarks – SIFMA 2012 Annual Meeting
jlne.ws/RASNRC

NFA Investor Newsletter – October 2012
jlne.ws/fEOGLZ

Comment On Future Of Computer Trading Report – ‘An Excellent Hors D’oeuvre But Leaves Vital Questions Unanswered’
jlne.ws/RASQgc

European Commission: Enhanced Cooperation On Financial Transaction Tax – Questions And Answers
jlne.ws/RASO7Z

[Japan] FSA extends temporary measures regarding restrictions on short selling and purchase of own stocks by listed companies
jlne.ws/RASO84

Exchanges & Trading Facilities

Exchanges Crack Down on Options Strategy
KAITLYN KIERNAN AND JACOB BUNGE – WSJ.com
Two of the biggest U.S. options-exchange operators are acting to discourage a controversial stock options-trading strategy, after a bank last month suffered a loss handling such a trade.
jlne.ws/RASQwF

The New York Stock Exchange on the Joy of Depositary Receipts
Nick Slepko – Motley Fool
The New York Stock Exchange discusses depositary receipts (foreign stocks traded on local exchanges) and the role DRs play in global investing. The NYSE Group lists 278 American depositary receipts (75% of the listed ADRs in the United States), which have a total market value of USD 5.7 trillion (94% of the ADR market value).
jlne.ws/RASOos

LME Gathering Leaves Downbeat Sentiment Behind
FRANCESCA FREEMAN AND CLEMENTINE WALLOP – WSJ.com
The mood wasn’t exactly cheery at the London Metal Exchange’s annual industry gathering last week, but the feeling among delegates also wasn’t as downbeat as recent economic headlines might suggest.
jlne.ws/RASQwG

MEFF Account Structure – New Sponsored Proprietary Account Approved
MEFF has approved a new type of account, the Sponsored Proprietary Account, which is added to the other types of accounts. The account structure in MEFF has the following characteristics:
jlne.ws/RASQwH

NASDAQ OMX Commodities Quarterly Report For Market Surveillance – 1 July To 30 September 2012
jlne.ws/RASOoC

Hedge Funds & Managed Futures

Exclusive: Blackstone targets stakes in hedge fund managers
Reuters via Yahoo! News
Blackstone Group LP is preparing to launch a multibillion-dollar fund that will buy stakes in hedge fund managers in the secondary market, as traditional buyers such as banks pull back amid disappointing fund performance and regulation.
jlne.ws/RASOoH

Algo Trader RSJ Sees Bond, Stock Expansion on Correlation
Bloomberg
RSJ AS, the largest algorithmic trader on NYSE Euronext’s Liffe derivatives platform, plans to diversify into cash equities, bonds and interest-rate swaps as correlations between financial markets tighten.
jlne.ws/RASQwO

Marex derivatives trader to launch algo start-up
Tom Osborn – Financial News
A senior equity derivatives trader at Marex, the futures brokerage backed by several former Lehman Brothers executives, has departed to launch his own algorithmic trading firm.
jlne.ws/RASOEY

Providence’s Richardson to Assume Senior Adviser Role
MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED – NYTimes.com
Julie G. Richardson, a managing director at Providence Equity Partners and one of the most prominent female private equity executives, is cutting back on her responsibilities by becoming a senior adviser, the firm said on Tuesday.
jlne.ws/RASOF0

Time for Caution as Bill Gross Pulls Back On Treasurys
MIN ZENG – WSJ.com
Bill Gross has sharply pulled back from the Treasury bond markets. Now the question is whether the famed bond manager, and others who’ve followed his lead, have gone too far.
jlne.ws/RASOF3

Change or Die: Are Consultants and Fund of Funds Forced to Revamp?
Marketwire via Yahoo! Finance
Change or Die: Are Consultants and Fund of Funds Forced to Revamp? features a distinguished panel of speakers for the November 1, 2012 program in Philadelphia organized by the Mid-Atlantic Hedge Fund Association (MAHFA).
jlne.ws/RASQNd

Banks & Brokers

Goldman says “never seriously” looked at selling commodities business
Reuters via Yahoo! News
Goldman Sachs Group Inc said on Tuesday the bank’s senior management had never “seriously” looked at spinning off all or part of its commodities business, as the bank faces tougher regulations that restrict its trading. The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that Goldman had held “preliminary internal discussions” in recent years about splitting off its commodities business.
jlne.ws/RASOFb

Euro Banking Supervisor Should Be Based in Dublin, Mayor Says
Bloomberg
Dublin Mayor Naoise O’Muiri is urging European leaders to establish the euro-area’s planned banking supervisor in the home of the world’s biggest banking crisis per capita since the Great Depression.
jlne.ws/RASQNl

Citigroup Bumping BofA Couldn’t Preserve Pandit: Credit Markets
Bloomberg
Citigroup Inc. , which last week ousted Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit over management missteps, is staging a comeback in corporate-bond underwriting as it helps overseas companies borrow in the U.S.
jlne.ws/RASR3A

SEC Informally Looking Into Citigroup Disclosures About Pandit’s Departure -Fox Business Network
Dow Jones
The Securities and Exchange Commission is informally looking into Citigroup Inc.’s (C) disclosures about Vikram Pandit’s departure from the firm, Fox Business Network reported Tuesday.
jlne.ws/RASR3B

Head of specialist sales departs Deutsche Bank
Matt Turner – Financial News
The head of specialist equity sales at Deutsche Bank, who previously managed one of the largest dedicated teams in Europe, has left the bank, Financial News can reveal.
jlne.ws/RASR3H

UBS set to cut 400 investment banking jobs: source
Reuters via Yahoo! News
UBS is set to cut 400 investment banking jobs as early as Wednesday, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters, with more job losses at the Swiss bank likely to follow. The 400 jobs would translate to less than 2.5 percent of UBS’s overall investment bank, which employed 16,432 people at the end of June.
jlne.ws/RASR3L

RBS agrees to $42.5 million settlement with Nevada attorney general: NYT
Reuters via Yahoo! News
Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC agreed to pay $42.5 million in a settlement with the Nevada attorney general after an investigation into the bank’s mortgage funding practices, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.
jlne.ws/RASPbZ

Brazil detains former bank president
Joe Leahy in São Paulo – FT.com
In a rare move for Brazil, the former president of Banco Cruzeiro do Sul was remanded in custody amid an investigation into alleged fraud at the medium-sized bank.
jlne.ws/RASRk8

European bank deleveraging: Basel III edition
Kate Mackenzie | FT Alphaville
What happened with all that European bank deleveraging? Some of it is over with, says Barclays — leaving, by our estimates of their estimates, about E650bn* of deleveraging yet to be carried out among the major European banks they cover**. Quite big, but much less than the E1.5tn – E2.5tn being discussed late last year.
jlne.ws/RASRk9

Saxo Bank Launches New Charts on SaxoTrader
PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance
Saxo Bank, the online multi-asset trading and investment specialist, has today launched new charts on SaxoTrader and SaxoWebTrader with enhanced functionalities.
jlne.ws/RASRkk

Clearing & Settlement

Clearstream Strengthens Commitment To Asia With Settlement Link To The Philippines
Clearstream has launched a new settlement link to provide institutional investors access to Philippine securities. The company will offer settlement and custody services for all asset classes denominated in the Philippine Peso, i.e. for listed equities, government bonds, corporate bonds, warrants, treasury bills and depository receipts. Clearstream customers will have the opportunity to develop post-trade solutions for the Philippine market using Clearstream as their single point of access.
jlne.ws/RASRAA

Indexes & Products

NYSE Euronext Launches CAC And AEX Low Risk Indices – Low Risk Indices Respond To Growing Demand For Better Risk Control Mechanisms
NYSE Euronext today announced the expansion of its range of indices with the launch of the CAC Low Risk Index and the AEX Low Risk Index. These low risk indices, developed in partnership with Finvex Group, are based on the successful European national blue chip indices and provide new risk adjusted investment possibilities for investors and Exchange Traded Product (ETP) providers.
jlne.ws/RASPsE

FTSE And Vanguard Discuss Benchmark Switching On Index Universe Webinar – 24th October
jlne.ws/RASPsL

Technology

PrimeOne Solutions Introduces The World’s First Buy-Side Swap Trading Solution
Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance
PrimeOne Solutions, a division of CoreOne Technologies, today announced the availability of SwapCloud, a Multi Asset Class Swap system, covering Equities, Converts, Corporates, Sovereign Debt, Futures, P-Notes, and ADR’s.
jlne.ws/RASRAD

Greenline Delivers Its VeriFIX Automated Testing Tool to Primary
Greenline Financial Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of electronic trading marketplace solutions, today announced it has delivered VeriFIX, Greenline’s automated connectivity testing tool, to Primary, the leading capital markets technology firm in Argentina. Primary used VeriFIX to test its FIX trading platform and trading interfaces.
jlne.ws/RASRAM

Former Tableau Software VP European Sales Bruno Saint-Cast To Boost Panopticon Sales Program In Europe
Panopticon Software, the leading provider of visual data analysis software for real-time and large volume data, today announced that Bruno Saint-Cast has joined the company as a senior vice president.
jlne.ws/RASPJc

Enforcement

CFTC Orders San Gabriel, California Resident David Kaup and His Companies to Pay over $1.89 Million in Restitution and Penalties to Settle Forex Fraud and Misappropriation Charges
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that it filed and simultaneously settled charges against David Kaup of San Gabriel, Calif., and his California-based companies, Lunden Forex Partners, LP, Lunden Forex Management, LLC (Lunden Entities), Black Horse Funds, LLC, Black Horse Management, LLC, and Black Horse Partners, LP (Black Horse Entities).
jlne.ws/RASRRc

Federal Court Orders Robert A. Christy And His Company, Crabapple Capital Group LLC, To Pay Over $2.6 Million In Monetary Sanctions For Foreign Currency Fraud – Court Permanently Bars Defendants From Commodities Industry
jlne.ws/RASPZE

CFTC Charges Floridian Christopher Smithers With Fraud In Connection With Commodity-Related Activities And Violations Of A Federal Court’s Prior Orders – Smithers Allegedly Defrauded Customers In Trading Commodity Futures Contracts And In The Purchase Of Gold Bullion
jlne.ws/RASSVf

UBS “rogue trader” was warned about SocGen scandal, court told
Reuters via Yahoo! News
LONDON – Ex-UBS trader Kweku Adoboli was warned by the Swiss bank about a “rogue trading” scandal at France’s Societe Generale years before he was charged with fraud over losses of $2.3 billion at UBS, a London court heard on Tuesday.
jlne.ws/RASS7P

SEC Begins Washington Finance Inquiry After City Audits Withheld
Bloomberg
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission opened an “informal inquiry” into Washington, D.C.’s finances after the city’s finance chief faced scrutiny for failing to disclose internal audits of his agency.
jlne.ws/RASSoa

FDIC Gets Windfall in Bank Failure Settlement
ROBIN SIDEL – WSJ.com
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is about to receive a $42 million legal settlement that will rank among the agency’s largest recoveries in the financial crisis—from a paper company that played no role in the bank failure that spurred the lawsuit.
jlne.ws/RASSoj

Poppy Thumbs His Nose at Finra. Again.
New York Times
Finra says it has banned David Lerner from the brokerage business for a year. The firm he founded says he’ll just move over to its mutual fund operations, not regulated by Finra.
jlne.ws/RASTbN

Rajaratnam’s Lawyers to Appeal His Insider Trading Sentence
PETER LATTMAN – NYTimes.com
In March 2008, the Justice Department made an extraordinary request: It asked a judge for permission to record secretly the phone conversations of Raj Rajaratnam, a billionaire hedge fund manager.
jlne.ws/RASSor

Environmental & Energy

European Union to Propose 2030 Climate Framework by 2014
Bloomberg
The European Union plans to propose next year or in 2014 a framework for reducing greenhouse gases in the period until 2030 to ensure regulatory stability necessary for investments in clean technologies.
jlne.ws/UyWZGb

**RKB – More in Carbon section.

Climate change still a no-show at debates
Politico
Scientists warn the planet is facing a global climate crisis that could result in unprecedented sea-level rise, drought and food shortages. But you wouldn’t know it from listening to the presidential debates.
jlne.ws/P0oIwL

Bigger Than Either of Them?
The New York Times
“DRILL, baby, drill.” It is among the best-remembered lines of the 2008 presidential campaign, colorfully capturing the desire of many Americans for cheap, reliable energy produced at home rather than in unpredictable places like Iran or Venezuela.
jlne.ws/RfKXic

NASDAQ OMX Commodities: Members Trading And Clearing Carbon Contracts Are Advised To Open Trading Account And Trusted Account List Arrangements In The EU ETS Union Registry
jlne.ws/RASTbV

Asia-Pacific

The Shenzhen Stock Exchange And The Options Industry Council Sign Mou Regarding Options Research And Education In China
The Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE) and The Options Industry Council (OIC) announced today they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding regarding joint options research and education. The ceremony was held with members of the OIC and SZSE in Shenzhen, China on Tuesday October 23, 2012.
jlne.ws/RASTse

SunGard Study of Japanese Treasury Practices Reveals Opportunities to Improve Cash and Risk Management
A SunGard study on corporate treasury management practices in Japan has found an opportunity to help corporations leapfrog over their competitors by enhancing their approach to cash management and risk management with treasury technology.
jlne.ws/RASTsh

As Asia investment banks cut staff, clients also dumped
Reuters via Yahoo! Finance
As well as firing thousands of staff, investment banks in Asia are quietly culling clients, too. The region’s initial public offering boom has slowed – the $20 billion mega-IPOs by Agricultural Bank of China and insurer AIA Group Ltd are now more than two years ago – and the banks’ business model needs a refresh.
jlne.ws/RASVAo

Thai Bourse Announces Key Developments In First 9 Months
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) announces that the overall performance in the first nine months was on track, particularly for key developments, several of which were successfully rolled out in the third quarter, including its new securities trading engine, SET CONNECT, while the main SET index rose to be Asia’s best performance, and market capitalization of both SET and the Market for Alternative Investment (mai) reached all-time highs. These developments underline the attractiveness of the Thai capital market and economy.
jlne.ws/RASTIK

Fidelity Sues Singapore, Hong Kong Firms for Infringement
Andrea Tan – Bloomberg
FIL Ltd., the holding firm of the Fidelity group of companies that manages $233 billion of assets, sued Singapore and Hong Kong companies for using the Fidelity name without its permission.
jlne.ws/RASTIP

Completion Of The Issue Of HKEx Convertible Bonds
jlne.ws/RASTIW

Dalian Commodity Exchange Circular On Trading Of New Contracts
jlne.ws/RASTZn

Frontier Markets

Egypt’s Savings Vacuum Shows Struggle for Banks: Islamic Finance
Bloomberg
Murad Hassan, who owns a stationary shop in Cairo, doesn’t keep his money in a bank, and says expanding Shariah-compliant finance under Egypt’s new Islamic government won’t change his mind.
jlne.ws/RASVQZ