September 25, 2019 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | | John Lothian Publisher John Lothian News | |
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Hits & Takes By JLN Staff Is it a good or bad sign if, after Thom Thompson's excellent reporting of the CFTC legal maneuvers in the Kraft/Mondelez case, my LinkedIn account was visited by a deputy general counsel of the CFTC? I will take it as a good sign and hope for the best.~JJL The CFTC has retained outside counsel ($$$$$$) to assist it in preparing for its hearing in the contempt of court phase of the Kraft/Mondelez settlement that is scheduled for next week. Attorney's from King & Spalding, an international law firm, have asked Judge Blakely for a status conference to be held before next week's hearing. The CFTC has also filed an appeal, presumably to avoid testifying. ~Thom Thompson Our friends at Bcause have been running sponsored content for their upcoming auction in JLN as a result of Thom Thompson's dogged reporting of the court proceedings of their bankruptcy. There are plenty of Bcause supporters in the readership of JLN, but there are also people who like to read about a good car crash. Which one are you?~JJL Online registration closes tomorrow for the STA 86th Annual Market Structure Conference: Realizing Opportunity, taking place in Washington D.C. Individuals will still be able to register onsite for $1,800. You can register and find more information here.~SR CME Group's Julie Winkler was interviewed by Hamlin Lovell of The Hedge Fund Journal.~JJL The Financial Times editorial board and The New Yorker both weighed in with editorials on the news that Britain's Supreme Court ruled that Boris Johnson's decision to suspend Parliament for five weeks was unlawful.~SR After yesterday's $1000-in-an-hour bitcoin crash, I decided to go to the popular website Reddit.com to see what independent crypto traders were saying about it. One commenter, apparently shaken by the plunge, was panicking, asking if Bakkt was responsible for the crash, if it had finally killed bitcoin. Someone responded by saying, "You must be new around here."~MR Boerse Stuttgart is the first German exchange to launched a regulated cryptocurrency exchange, but it will not be the last. Deutsche Boerse is planning to launch a trading platform in Switzerland with Swisscom this year.~JK ++++ Opening Remarks of FIA President and CEO Walt Lukken at FIA Forum: Frankfurt 2019 FIA.org (as prepared) Guten Morgen and welcome to FIA's Frankfurt Forum. This city is the perfect gathering place for our industry, given its unique position in global finance. To begin with, Frankfurt is one of the more international cities in Europe with one-quarter of its residents coming from outside Germany. It is the largest financial center in continental Europe with several important FIA members located here, including Deutsche Boerse, Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank. bit.ly/2loFFJn ****If Walt is the opening act in Frankfurt, who is the lead group?~JJL ++++ History shows health is the foundation of African prosperity; Good health enables people to learn and earn, to start businesses and to thrive Paul Kagame and Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus - FT For many people, the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo reinforces their stereotype of Africa: a place where people suffer from exotic diseases that have long since disappeared from rich countries, or never arrived there. /on.ft.com/2lFs4NU *****It is not just African prosperity. Good health is important to all economic growth, which is why the U.S. debate about health costs and insurance is so important.~JJL ++++ Facebook tries to reassure lawmakers on Libra launch Zachary Warmbrodt - Politico Facebook is trying to reassure Congress that its Libra digital currency won't launch until the concerns of policymakers in the U.S. are resolved. In a letter sent today to Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), David Marcus — the head of Facebook's Calibra digital wallet division — said the company and the association that will manage Libra are committed to working with regulators in the U.S. and around the world. /politi.co/2mG0Siw **** "It'll be great! Nothing to worry about. Have we ever lied to you?" (Facebook probably) ~JB ++++
Sponsored Content | BCause LLC has received a proposal to sell its equity interests in BCause Secure, LLC and its cryptocurrency spot exchange platform (the "Spot Exchange") as part of the chapter 11 bankruptcy cases of BCause LLC and BCause Mining LLC, which are jointly administered as Case No. 19-10562 and pending before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois. All parties interested in making a competing proposal for the Spot Exchange must send an e-mail to [email protected] on or before October 4, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. Central, which includes the following: Discloses the identity and contact information for each person or entity interested in the Spot Exchange; and A list of requested information necessary to make a proposal relating to the Spot Exchange. All potential purchasers of the Spot Exchange shall submit an offer, letter of intent, and term sheet, via email to [email protected] on or before October 11, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. Central.
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++++ Tuesday's Top Three Our top story of the day was Bloomberg's piece about HKEX's CEO in London Stock Exchange Bid: HKEX's Charles Li Isn't Giving Up. Second was the Vanity Fair piece about the always interesting mix of politics and children - and where that gets you - in Melania Trump Found 10 Kids to Join Her at the New York Stock Exchange. And third was ETF Trends' piece about the cash US Treasury market in The Hidden Treasure in Treasury Trading ++++ MarketsWiki Stats 163,811,068 pages viewed; 23,926 pages; 221,618 edits MarketsWiki Statistics ++++
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Lead Stories | Repo Turmoil Spawns Doubt Fed Is Targeting Right Interest Rate Rich Miller - Bloomberg Federal funds market is 'moribund,' BofA's Cabana says; Fed discussed alternatives to funds target in November Recent turbulence in U.S. money markets has cast light on a big problem hidden at the root of the Federal Reserve's conduct of monetary policy: It is targeting an increasingly irrelevant interest rate. /bloom.bg/2lCVI6z Germany's No. 2 Exchange Launches Bitcoin Spot Trading Coindesk Boerse Stuttgart, Germany's second-largest stock exchange, has opened a regulated trading venue for digital assets, the company said. Trading began today on Boerse Stuttgart Digital Exchange (BSDEX), a fully regulated digital asset exchange under the German Banking Act, according to a statement. As of now, BSDEX is trading only one pair, the bitcoin-euro. bit.ly/2ljqfWV Startbase is live - the digital platform for the German startup ecosystem Boerse Stuttgart Group Boerse Stuttgart Group and Bundesverband Deutsche Startups e.V., the German Startups Association, presented the online platform Startbase at the offices of Berlin-based FinTech N26 on 25 September 2019. Startbase is the first digital platform with the objective of centrally mapping the entire German startup ecosystem and making it more transparent. The clear vision is to play an active role in shaping the ecosystem and helping its members to achieve further growth by making networking easier. Over 750 enterprises are taking part at the start, including more than 600 startup companies. bit.ly/2n5HOdu Mitsubishi ex-trader denies making unauthorised oil trades; Lawyer for Wang Xingchen says $320m losses caused by company's decisions Stefania Palma and Robin Harding - FT A trader fired by Mitsubishi in Singapore for allegedly losing $320m through failed bets on the oil price says none of his transactions were unauthorised and the losses were a result of decisions the company made, according to his lawyer. /on.ft.com/2lucjJW Global debt surges to highest level in peacetime World's major economies have debts on average of more than 70% of GDP Tommy Stubbington - FT The level of government debt around the world has ballooned since the financial crisis, reaching levels never seen before during peacetime. /on.ft.com/2nbsxYV ECB's Coeure Sounds All Clear for Launch of New Short-Term Rate Yuko Takeo and Piotr Skolimowski - Bloomberg Executive board member says stress test showed ESTR is ready; ECB will start publishing new benchmark on Oct. 2, as planned The European Central Bank signaled to banks that the ball is now in their court to make sure the transition to a new lending benchmark interest rate goes smoothly. /bloom.bg/2n4H3RT Fast-Approaching Brexit Deadline Spurs Pound-Bond Sales Rush Hannah Benjamin and Lyubov Pronina - Bloomberg BMW, Just Life among six borrowers offering pound notes; September is busiest month for sterling issuance since January Bayerische Motoren Werke AG and life insurer Just Group Plc are among six borrowers selling pound bonds on Wednesday, as issuers rush to lock in financing before potential market upheavals around the looming Brexit deadline. /bloom.bg/2lFmET4 Deutsche chief Christian Sewing warns 'sky has darkened' for Europe; Attack on central bankers and politicians comes as lender retreats from global ambitions Stephen Morris - FT Deutsche Bank chief executive Christian Sewing has deepened his criticism of European politicians and central bankers for strangling growth in the region and making it an increasingly unattractive place for international investment. /on.ft.com/2n80YiV Danske Bank Executive Ensnared in Money-Laundering Scandal Found Dead Ott Ummelas - Bloomberg Estonia branch Rehe oversaw until 2015 is at heart of affair; Executive wasn't a suspect in tainted-money investigation The former head of Danske Bank in Estonia, the unit at the center of a $220 billion money-laundering scandal, was found dead after disappearing from his home on Monday. /bloom.bg/2nbb56L Credit Suisse Spy Probe Set to Decide Fate of Top Executives Patrick Winters - Bloomberg Board of directors is set to conclude spying probe this week; Bank is scrambling to contain crisis after Iqbal Khan incident Credit Suisse Group AG plans to finish its probe into a corporate spying case this week, and the findings have the potential to bring down Chief Executive Officer Tidjane Thiam or other senior executives. /bloom.bg/2n2xSRY Credit Suisse disputes allegations about private investigator; Departing executive Iqbal Khan claims he was chased by three men through streets of Zurich Stephen Morris - FT Credit Suisse has challenged a departing executive's account of a confrontation with private investigators hired by the bank, disputing allegations that are being examined by Swiss prosecutors. /on.ft.com/2lsuf7K CoinDesk Victim of Hoax in Which Fake Kik CEO Claimed to Quit William Foxley - Coindesk CoinDesk has become the apparent victim of a Telegram hoax, in which an unknown individual sought to spread misinformation by posing as Ted Livingston, CEO of messaging startup Kik. CoinDesk regrets the error and the publication of the original story. bit.ly/2mXzwV5 ***This is why a healthy dose of skepticism is an important part of consuming online media...unless you're reading/watching content from JLN, of course.~MR TMC Bonds fined $2.1 million for disclosing client trading intensions; TMC Bonds, recently acquired by ICE, was found to have revealed client trading intentions to potential counterparties on its anonymous trading platform. Hayley McDowell - The Trade The US financial regulator has fined fixed income alternative trading system (ATS) TMC Bonds $2.1 million for failing to protect confidential client information, including trading intentions. bit.ly/2n9BCkS U.N. Panel Details Effects of Climate Change on Oceans and Ice Caps; Report by scientists from more than 30 countries urges governments to meet carbon-reduction goals set in 2015 Paris accord Robert Lee Hotz - WSJ A scientific panel under the auspices of the United Nations has concluded after reviewing thousands of research studies that oceans are warming and ice sheets are shrinking because of heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions. /on.wsj.com/2ltvjZ2 Why a reliance on experts poses a regulatory conflict Izabella Kaminska - FT What is the point of a financial ethics body that has no power to enforce or implement the rules and guidelines it comes up with in the markets it supposedly polices? /on.ft.com/2lCwzc4 IHS Markit Launches First Global Index for Carbon Credits; Global Carbon Index combines proprietary information and futures markets data to produce the first benchmark for the global price of carbon IHS Markit IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO), a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions, today announced that it has launched the IHS Markit Global Carbon Index, the first benchmark for the global price of carbon credits. bit.ly/2lqe9LP Trading costs rise after Switzerland's loss of EU access rights; Price of trading shares in small and mid-cap companies has increased by a fifth, analysis shows Philip Stafford - FT Switzerland's loss of access rights to EU stock markets has concentrated trading in Zurich while raising costs for buying shares in smaller companies, according to research that sheds light on the potential consequences of Brexit. /on.ft.com/2lBlBDN The U.S. Is Growing More Corn Than It Can Handle; The spectacular productivity gains of the past 90 years are a miracle — and a problem. Justin Fox - Bloomberg This year's U.S. corn crop isn't looking great. Soggy spring weather in many parts of the Midwest delayed planting, and warmer-than-normal temperatures lately have been posing their own problems. 1 /bloom.bg/2n5t0vn Justice Eyes Crypto in Money Laundering Enforcement Push Jacob Rund - Bloomberg Law The Justice Department's top money laundering enforcer is keeping a close watch on cryptocurrency providers and transactions as it grapples with challenges presented by the technology, an agency official said Sept. 24. Virtual assets such as bitcoin have become a "very, very important" subject for the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, according to its chief, Deborah Connor. bit.ly/2mGBEjG Comscore and former chief Matta settle SEC charges Mamta Badkar - FT US media analytics firm Comscore and its former chief executive Serge Matta agreed to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges they engaged in a fraudulent scheme to overstate revenues by $50m and made "false and misleading statements" about its performance. /on.ft.com/2lDK2k1 U.S. securities chief 'not prepared' to say if Facebook's Libra a security Katanga Johnson - Reuters The head of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission repeatedly refused to tell a congressional panel on Tuesday whether or not Facebook's Libra would be regulated as a security under his watch. /reut.rs/2n3MnVE Crypto Exchanges Step Up Customer Bounties as Volume Falls Olga Kharif Binance expands program to also pay bonuses to new customers; Volume down 40% recently on major exchanges, TokenAnalyst says Someone who goes by Gary Cruz says he's already earned about $10,000 by referring people to Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. /bloom.bg/2nctnVd The Fund Manager Blocking Johnson's Brexit Sprint Max Colchester - The Wall Street Journal Behind the latest bout of constitutional upheaval to envelop Brexit stands a Guyanese-born fund manager, Gina Miller. Outside the U.K. Supreme Court in London on Tuesday, Ms. Miller celebrated her latest victory against the government: a momentous ruling that Prime Minister Boris Johnson had unlawfully suspended Parliament. /on.wsj.com/2mCGdf0 US Congress Asks Financial Crime Director to Study Blockchain Tech Joeri Cant - Cointelegraph The United States House of Representatives has passed a bill that calls for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to study blockchain technology in its fight against financial crime. On Sept. 19, the House passed the bill "Advancing Innovation to Assist Law Enforcement Act," which requires the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Kenneth Blanco, to carry out a study on the use of emerging technologies, such as blockchain technology, within FinCEN. bit.ly/2lDkymR
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Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | Announcement concerning Result of the Tender Offer for Shares of Tokyo Commodity Exchange, Inc. and a Change of Subsidiary, etc. JPX Japan Exchange Group, Inc. (the "Tender Offeror") resolved, at the meeting of the Board of Directors held on July 30, 2019, to acquire the shares of common stock (the "Target Company's Common Stock") and nonvoting stock (the "Target Company's Non-Voting Stock") of Tokyo Commodity Exchange, Inc. (the "Target Company") (hereinafter, the "Target Company's Common Stock" and the "Target Company's Non-Voting Stock" shall be collectively referred to as the "Target Company's Stock") through a tender offer (the "Tender Offer") under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (Act No. 25 of 1948, as amended; hereinafter referred to as the "Act"), and commenced the Tender Offer on August 1, 2019. The Tender Offeror hereby announces that the Tender Offer was completed on September 24, 2019, as described below bit.ly/2lGIyWf PJT Partners and Nasdaq Private Market Partner to Deliver Enhanced Execution for General Partner-Sponsored Secondary Transactions; Combines PJT Park Hill's Industry-Leading Secondary Advisory Capabilities with Nasdaq Private Market's Innovative Technology to Provide Best-in-Class Execution Nasdaq PJT Partners LP ("PJT Partners"), a subsidiary of PJT Partners Inc. (NYSE: PJT), and Nasdaq Private Market ("NPM"), a business of Nasdaq, Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ), today announced an agreement to provide enhanced execution capabilities for general partner-sponsored secondary transactions built on world-class advisory services and industry-leading technology. bit.ly/2nbey5f Change of Standardised OTC derivatives system IP address Moscow Exchange Dear clients of the Standardised OTC Derivatives Market, Please note that on 12 October 2019 the IP address of the Standardised OTC Derivatives Market system (otc.moex.com) in Internet will be changed... bit.ly/2nbQY8B Use of MOEX Trade SE terminal with ASTS Bridge Moscow Exchange To the attention of Securities market clients who use MOEX Trade SE terminals in conjunction with the ASTS Bridge software (i.e. when MOEX Trade SE is located in the CLT network segment of the universal... bit.ly/2lGPTVN TeamViewer AG celebrates IPO in Frankfurt Deutsche Börse Group TeamViewer AG (ISIN: DE000A2YN900 ) is listed in the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange today . The shares of the software manufacturer quoted at the start of trading at 26.25 euros, the offer price was also 26.25 euros. Based on the first stock market price, the company has a market capitalization of 5.25 billion euros. bit.ly/2lFt8Br SIX unveils custody-agnostic collateral management platform; SIX's Collateral Cockpit will link fragmented front and back-office systems and provide control over collateral management functions. Richard Schwartz - The Trade SIX has launched a new collateral management technology interface aimed at eliminating many of the challenges caused by fragmented systems. bit.ly/2n3cWKD HKEX, London Stock Exchange bosses, locked in takeover feud, clash over whether Hong Kong is the true financial gateway to China; The chief executives of the two stock exchanges disagreed strongly when fate threw them together at the Sibos 2019 conference in London on Tuesday Stuart Lau - South China Morning Post The bosses of the Hong Kong and London stock exchanges got into a war of words on Tuesday when fate brought them together at the same event in the midst of a bitter takeover battle. bit.ly/2lukO7M
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Fintech | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | JPMorgan invests $25 million in fintech start-ups Elizabeth Dilts - Reuters JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) is investing $25 million to support fintech start-ups that help low-income Americans be more financially healthy, bank executives said on Tuesday. JPMorgan's head of global philanthropy Karen Keogh said the investment in the Financial Solutions Lab will help early-stage fintech companies products that could help people in communities like Harlem. /reut.rs/2lu9Kar Bloomberg expands China Bond Connect services; Bloomberg has introduced real-time streaming liquidity and automated workflow for investors accessing the Bond Connect scheme. Hayley McDowell - The Trade Bloomberg has made moves to expand its services supporting the China Bond Connect initiative via the Terminal, as it looks to automate certain processes for global investors. bit.ly/2nbCx4p Stripe Rakes In Cash Even as Payments Hype Cools; Private fundraising round values company at $35 billion Telis Demos - WSJ Payments company Stripe has just raised a boatload of cash at a hefty valuation. But in public markets, investor enthusiasm for the once red-hot payments industry seems to be cooling. /on.wsj.com/2lCyGww Why robots see no logic in betting against central bankers; Asset managers are opting to follow trends rather than risk getting left behind Laurence Fletcher - FT Bonds are back. A long-anticipated sell-off in sovereign debt has petered out over the past week, as Bund and Treasury yields have fallen back to the levels of mid-August. /on.ft.com/2n84WYR PayPal's iZettle Acquisition Draws Fine From UK Regulator PYMNTS Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in the U.K. has levied a fine against PayPal for breaking rules regarding marketing in the country when it acquired iZettle for $2.2 billion, according to a report by the Financial Times. bit.ly/2n5K7gE Innovate Finance releases statement on British Business Bank Future of DC Pensions Report Innovate Finance "The findings from the British Business Bank report highlight huge potential for the UK FinTech & Tech sector, should defined contribution pension scheme investment be encouraged into venture capital and growth equity. bit.ly/2lGhMNx
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Cryptocurrencies | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | For Desperate Mt Gox Victims, Long-Shot Bitcoin Deal Beats Endless Wait Anna Baydakova - Coindesk Creditors of failed bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox are considering an offer by Russian law firm ZP Legal, which claimed it could recover up to 200,000 BTC from unnamed Russian nationals. Some creditors are questioning the firm's motives and extraordinarily high fees and looking for alternatives. It's unclear if Nobuaki Kobayashi, the Mt. Gox trustee leading the court restructuring process in Japan, will work with ZP Legal. Creditors hope to hear the answer during the next meeting on Oct. 1. bit.ly/2mpo0BJ SEC Delays Decision on Wilshire Phoenix Bitcoin ETF Proposal Nikhilesh De - Coindesk The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has begun proceedings to determine whether it should approve a proposed bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). According to a public filing published Tuesday, the SEC has begun evaluating the proposed rule change to allow NYSE Arca to list and trade shares of Wilshire Phoenix's Bitcoin and Treasury Investment Trust. The companies first filed the rule change proposal in May. bit.ly/2kXQsu4 Bitfinex And Tether Win Stay In $900 Million New York Supreme Court Case Michael del Castillo - Forbes Cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex has won a motion in the appellate division of the New York Supreme Court, which means it won't have to turn over documents pertaining to its use of the cryptocurrency Tether until a future date, if at all. bit.ly/2l7q690 Bitcoin Drifts Lower as Cryptos Stabilize After Tuesday Plunge Olga Kharif and Eric Lam - Bloomberg Bitcoin struggled as the U.S. trading day began, extending its decline in the wake of Tuesday's broad plunge across cryptocurrencies even as several alternative coins staged a modest recovery. The most traded digital asset fell 2.2% to $8,395 as of 6:42 a.m. in New York, slowing down after a wild ride the previous day saw an intraday drop of 17% -- the biggest since January 2018, according to Bloomberg composite pricing. Bitcoin hadn't traded below $9,000 since June. /bloom.bg/2mz4rHc Bitcoin near three-month lows after tepid response to NYSE owner's futures Tom Wilson, Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss - Reuters Bitcoin struggled on Wednesday to recover from the three-month lows it reached a day earlier, moves that traders blamed on a lukewarm reception for a futures product from the owner of the New York Stock Exchange. /reut.rs/2n3waQi Kik Shuts App, Faces Hoax in Tumult of Crypto-to-Messaging Shift Vildana Hajric - Bloomberg Beleaguered messaging app Kik Interactive Inc. isn't giving up its fight with regulators so easily. The company behind the Kin digital token announced this week it's shutting down its messaging app and reducing its headcount to 19 people to better focus on its fight with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for illegally raising millions through an initial coin offering, or ICO. The downsizing impacts more than 100 employees and their families, the company said. /bloom.bg/2n6szRy Circle puts research arm on pause The Block Crypto Circle, the Boston-based cryptocurrency firm, announced Tuesday that it is going to "pause" its research arm, Circle Research. According to a statement from the firm, despite "significant progress" of its content offerings, Circle has decided to evaluate its content contribution and strategy. "With that in mind, we've decided to pause Circle Research activity for the time being as we decide on a future direction for the program," the statement reads. bit.ly/2lCIt5R Binance adds one more channel to its fiat gateway, allowing users to pay for crypto with debit and credit cards Yogita Khatri - The Block Crypto Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has just added one more channel to its fiat gateway, giving users more options to pay for cryptocurrencies. The exchange announced Wednesday that it has partnered with London-based payments processor Koinal for the new channel. It will allow Binance users to buy five cryptocurrencies - bitcoin (BTC), bitcoin cash (BCH), ether (ETH), litecoin (LTC) and XRP - with Visa and MasterCard debit and credit cards, as well as via wire bank transfers. bit.ly/2ltBuMJ Fidelity, Tencent, Rakuten Back $20 Million Round for UK Blockchain Provenance Firm Darryn Pollock - Forbes UK-based blockchain startup Everledger, which began as a platform using blockchain to verify the authenticity of diamonds, has attracted investment led by Chinese multinational investment holding conglomerate but also backed by American multinational financial services corporation Fidelity, and Japanse electronic commerce and Internet company, Rakuten. bit.ly/2lDeeM9 Barclays Hackathon to Attack Data 'Silos' With Blockchain Ian Allison - Coindesk Barclays is holding another hackathon to tackle the financial services industry's perennial problem of systems that don't talk to each other. Once again, blockchain will take center stage. The second annual DerivHack 2019 will take place October 16-17 in Barclays' Rise accelerator spaces in London and New York, sites of last year's 48-hour coding marathon, and in the megabank's Singapore office this time as well. The event is outgrowing its name, as equities and bonds will be added to the mix of financial instruments involved. bit.ly/2mFiRpi Bakkt's Slow Start Doesn't Mean Bitcoin Futures Have Flopped Galen Moore - Coindesk It's a lively time for bitcoin derivatives - or at least for those writing about them. For those trading them, it may be business as usual. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) announced Friday it is preparing to offer options trades on its bitcoin futures contract. It's a surprising move, because options volume to date rounds to zero, as a percentage of reported volume in futures and swaps. Still, nobody in crypto has had an options counterparty as reliable as CME before. bit.ly/2l5L7kr Wall Street Paves The Way For Bitcoin To Become 'People's Currency' Panos Mourdoukoutas - Forbes Wall Street is working to solve one of Bitcoin's biggest problems: market volatility. And that could pave the way for the digital currency to become "people's currency." bit.ly/2n6XNbe China Bursts Bubble on Digital-Currency Speculation Tanner Brown, MarketWatch China's central bank is denying widespread reports that it will release a digital currency by November, and saying the internet giants Alibaba (ticker: BABA) and Tencent (TCEHY) will not be the first companies to utilize its online payment system when it is rolled out. bit.ly/2nb63qP
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Politics | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | House launches Trump impeachment inquiry; Nancy Pelosi accuses US president of enlisting a foreign power to help win 2020 elections Demetri Sevastopulo and Lauren Fedor and James Politi - FT Donald Trump became the fourth US president to face impeachment proceedings after Democratic House speaker Nancy Pelosi accused him of betraying his oath of office and US national security by seeking a foreign power's help in the 2020 election. /on.ft.com/2lsZSy1 Trump Sucks All the Optimism Out of Markets; Tough talk on trade leads financial commentary. Plus a bond rally and a way to short Bitcoin. Robert Burgess - Bloomberg This is not the way olive branches are supposed to work. With signs that the recent frosty relationship between U.S. and China trade negotiators was beginning to thaw, investors expected that President Donald Trump might use his United Nations address to strike a conciliatory tone. Instead, he bashed China, accusing it of manipulating its currency and stealing intellectual property just days before planned high-level trade talks. Markets responded accordingly. /bloom.bg/2n5Ne8h Sanders, Warren Compete for Who Can Tax Billionaires the Most Laura Davison and Emma Kinery - Bloomberg Sanders upstages Warren's wealth tax with larger version; 'Sanders decline isn't about plans or taxes or climate change.' Senator Elizabeth Warren's wealth tax proposal is big. Senator Bernie Sanders' is about 60% bigger. /bloom.bg/2lClibK Impeachment Is No Longer a Political Loser for Democrats; The Clinton example doesn't apply in Trump's case. Ramesh Ponnuru - Bloomberg After months of hesitation, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has called for an inquiry into the impeachment of President Donald Trump. /bloom.bg/2ltfS32 China Prepares to Buy More U.S. Pork as Trade Talks Revive Bloomberg News Buyers are inquiring at firms including U.S-based Smithfield; Volumes aren't finalized, though could be about 100,000 tons Chinese companies are preparing to purchase more U.S. pork, according to people familiar with the situation, as the government battles against domestic shortages and top trade negotiators from both nations plan to meet in Washington next month. /bloom.bg/2nbiyCV The mother of all Trumpian battles; Ukraine whistleblower holds key to presidential impeachment process Edward Luce - FT You should be careful what you wish for, goes the saying. You might actually get it. After months of goading Democrats to put up or shut up, Donald Trump finally provoked Democrats on Tuesday into launching an impeachment process to remove him. It is anybody's guess whether Mr Trump has been tempting fate, or genuinely believes impeachment will help win him re-election next year. Now we will find out. /on.ft.com/2n8YLDZ During Last Impeachment Proceedings, Investors Stuck With Hot Stocks; Six of top 10 performing stocks during President Clinton's trial were tech stocks Impeachment? No Problem Paul Vigna - WSJ It might be time for investors to start thinking about their impeachment strategies. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday said she is directing an impeachment inquiry into President Trump. That came after a series of related headlines earlier in the session pointed in that direction, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average down as much as 245 points. /on.wsj.com/2n6Ni7O Warren Tied With Biden in New National Poll: Campaign Update Kathleen Hunter - Bloomberg Check here for live updates from the 2020 campaign trail; It's first Quinnipiac survey to show Biden trailing a rival Elizabeth Warren is essentially tied with Joe Biden nationwide, continuing a surge in surveys that showed her ahead in Iowa and New Hampshire, according to a Quinnipiac poll released Wednesday. /bloom.bg/2lDvRvj Will Impeachment Affect the Elections? Whatever the outcome of the House's inquiry, the electoral effects will probably be small - and possibly nonexistent. Jonathan Bernstein - Bloomberg With House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announcing a formal impeachment inquiry on Tuesday, it's worth considering the electoral politics involved. It's early to speculate on such things, of course. There's been no polling on the whistle-blower complaint that prompted this announcement. Nor do we know whether the House will wind up voting for impeachment or what the Senate will do. But we can think about how public opinion and elections normally work, and how the uncertainties of impeachment may factor in. /bloom.bg/2luZijh Trump Uses UN Speech to Hit China Over Trade Weeks Before Talks Bill Faries and Peter Martin - Bloomberg President says Beijing has failed to adopt expected reforms; Top Chinese diplomat urges two sides to avoid confrontation U.S. President Donald Trump used his speech at the United Nations General Assembly to reiterate complaints about China's trade practices just weeks before negotiators from both sides are due to meet in Washington. /bloom.bg/2lv0AuD Trump impeachment? History suggests Wall Street ought not worry Noel Randewich - Reuters The move by Democrats in the U.S. Congress on Tuesday to launch a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump has caused nervousness on Wall Street - but history suggests investors need not worry. /reut.rs/2lD5aa3 Anthony Scaramucci Makes A Bold Prediction About How It Ends For Trump; The former White House communications director says it's over for the president. Ed Mazza - Huffington Post Anthony Scaramucci, the former White House communications director who infamously lasted just 10 days working for President Donald Trump, says his old boss is toast. bit.ly/2lDlDLi "One Never Feels More Alive Than When the President Is Calling You an Unstable Nutjob": Courting Business Leaders and Former Trumpers, Scaramucci Tries to Build an Anti-Trump Army ; With two new planned PACs, a swing state speaking tour, and a full-court press on former administration officials and Wall Street peers, the Mooch is professionalizing his never-Trump operation. William D. Cohan - Vanity Fair Last month, Anthony Scaramucci declared a one-man war against his former boss. He's spent the weeks since laying the groundwork to build an anti-Trump army. Since his August Bill Maher appearance—the one that certified him as an anti-Trumper—Mooch has been "socializing" the idea with the "business community" and the "political class" that Trump is unfit for office, discovering "who is willing to talk" and what is their "level of dissatisfaction." He says he has now "corroborated what I'm thinking." bit.ly/2lGmQl3 The cannabis banking bill isn't just about banks; It's also about repairing damage from the "war on drugs." Makada Henry-Nickie, John Hudak, Aaron Klein - Politico This week, Congress finally began to act on the nation's first stand-alone cannabis reform legislation. The SAFE Banking Act, as it's known, seeks to provide protections to financial institutions that work with state-licensed cannabis businesses, extending them the same protections afforded other businesses. The House is expected to vote this week and signs are growing that the Senate may soon consider it as well. /politi.co/2nbThZb
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Regulation & Enforcement | For more regulatory, visit MarketsReformWiki, our website focused on current market reform efforts. | US, UK Agencies Work to Clean Up Credit Derivatives Market Editors - Regulation Asia In a joint statement, the SEC, CFTC and FCA have pledged to work together to address "opportunistic strategies" that harm the credit derivatives market. The SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) and UK FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) have issued a joint statement outlining concerns about the pursuit of "opportunistic strategies" in the credit derivatives markets. bit.ly/2mXdH81 SEC Staff Issues Statement on LIBOR Transition; Practical Considerations for Investment Companies, Investment Advisers and Other Financial Institutions in Proactively Addressing LIBOR Cessation and Transition LexologySEC Staff Issues Statement on LIBOR Transition; Practical Considerations for Investment Companies, Investment Advisers and Other Financial Institutions in Proactively Addressing LIBOR Cessation and Transition bit.ly/2nbSrM9 Executive Representative Reminder and Board and Nominating Committee Members Whose Terms Will Expire at the Board's 2020 Regular Annual Meeting; Executive Representative Reminder NFA NFA utilizes an electronic voting process for Directors' elections, contested Nominating Committee member elections and Articles' amendments approval votes. If elections are necessary, NFA has engaged Corporate Election Services (CES), a third-party service provider, to administer the electronic voting process. bit.ly/2nbOPd3 Opening Statement of Commissioner Dawn D. Stump before the Global Markets Advisory Committee Meeting CFTC Good morning and welcome to the second Global Markets Advisory Committee meeting of 2019. bit.ly/2lCOa3C Opening Statement of Chairman Heath P. Tarbert Before the Global Markets Advisory Committee Meeting CFTC Good morning, and thank you all for being here. I would especially like to thank Commissioner Stump and her staff for convening this meeting of the Global Markets Advisory Committee (GMAC). My thanks also to Andrée Goldsmith, the Designated Federal Officer for the GMAC, for organizing the meeting. And of course, thank you to the Committee members for traveling from near and far and taking the time to share your valuable perspectives. bit.ly/2n58QBH Opening Statement of Commissioner Brian Quintenz before the CFTC Global Markets Advisory Committee Meeting CFTC Thank you Commissioner Stump for convening today's meeting of the Global Markets Advisory Committee (GMAC). Today's meeting has a robust agenda, including exploring some of the current challenges firms are facing during the implementation of two significant derivatives regulatory matters: uncleared margin regulations and EMIR 2.2. I would like to thank all of the presenters and Committee members for their participation and engagement. bit.ly/2nbkyeh SEC Charges Comscore Inc. and Former CEO with Accounting and Disclosure Fraud SEC The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged global information and media analytics firm, Comscore, Inc., and its former CEO with engaging in a fraudulent scheme to overstate revenue by approximately $50 million and making false and misleading statements about key performance metrics. bit.ly/2lErXCq Oversight of the Securities and Exchange Commission: Wall Street's Cop on the Beat SEC Chairwoman Waters, Ranking Member McHenry and Members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today about the work of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission or agency).[1] bit.ly/2n6jrwg SEC Charges TMC Bonds With Failing to Protect Confidential Subscriber Information SEC The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that TMC Bonds LLC, operator of an alternative trading system (ATS) for fixed income securities, has agreed to pay $2.1 million to settle charges arising from TMC Bonds' failure to protect confidential subscriber information. bit.ly/2lttyLo Steven Maijoor - introductory remarks to the 2nd Roundtable on Euro Risk Free Rates ESMA Steven Maijoor, Chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), has delivered the opening remarks at today's second roundtable on euro risk free rates at the European Central Bank in Frankfurt. bit.ly/2lqQlaF ASIC regtech voice analytics symposium ASIC Opening statement by ASIC Chair James Shipton, Melbourne, 24 September 2019 bit.ly/2nbfxSZ Ghosn opens up host of questions with $1m SEC deal; Former Nissan boss hopes US settlement will not impact defence against Japanese charges Leo Lewis and Kana Inagaki - FT Carlos Ghosn has agreed to pay $1m to settle fraud charges with the US Securities and Exchange Commission over allegations the former Nissan boss hid more than $140m of his pay package. /on.ft.com/2n57GpS FCA Keeps a Close Watch, Flags Midpoint Exchange Clone Firm; The entity is a clone firm of Midpoint & Transfer Ltd, the regulator warned. Celeste Skinner -Finance Magnates The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), in its efforts to protect consumers against fraudsters and scam artists, has published a warning on its website on Tuesday against a clone of a regulated entity. bit.ly/2lubkJK OntarioSecuritiesCommissionAnnouncesMarketStructureAdvisoryCommitteeMembers Mondovisione The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) announced today the membership of the Market Structure Advisory Committee (MSAC) for the 2019 - 2021 term. bit.ly/2ncr7NJ
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Investing & Trading | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | The investment risks of unintended consequences; Bad things will inevitably happen — just don't overreact to them Simon Edelsten - FT A nervous TV reporter once approached legendary Nottingham Forest football manager Brian Clough and hesitantly asked: "Can we have a couple of words for the programme, Brian?" /on.ft.com/2lEanOW Cocoa farmers in west Africa at mercy of global markets; Bean producers struggle to make a profit despite chocolate makers' reliance on their crops Orla Ryan - FT Stand in the supermarket sweets aisle for any length of time and you would be forgiven for thinking your biggest problem is which chocolate bar to choose. /on.ft.com/2nb1k8B How US stocks reacted to past impeachment proceedings Mamta Badkar - FT President Donald Trump has said that he believes the US stock market would crash if he was impeached. However, the rising possibility of impeachment proceedings against Mr Trump saw Wall Street reverse early gains on Tuesday and send the S&P 500 0.8 per cent lower, the biggest drop in a month, and the Dow down 0.5 per cent. House Democrats said they would launch impeachment proceedings after markets closed. /on.ft.com/2lCuuwM IHS Markit launches global carbon index; The price of carbon credits has surged as governments launch trading schemes Nikou Asgari - FT Data provider IHS Markit has created its first global carbon index, allowing investors to gain exposure to the US and European markets for carbon credits at a time when policymakers are paying increasing attention to the challenges of climate change. /on.ft.com/2nbt1yd Chasing wealth managers is a risky business; Private banks are fighting to advise billionaires who want a lot for their money John Gapper - FT Zurich is a sober and orderly city, so a fierce altercation near the Swiss National Bank between a banker to the world's billionaires and a private detective who was trailing him is worthy of John Le Carré. It is all the more lurid that Credit Suisse ordered surveillance of Iqbal Khan after he left abruptly for its rival UBS. /on.ft.com/2lt7CA2 Fed's 2-week loans draw strong demand after repo stress; Banks request more than double the $30bn on offer from New York Joe Rennison - FT Banks requested more than double the $30bn of two-week loans on offer from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Tuesday, as they sought to shore up short-term financing ahead of the end of the third quarter. /on.ft.com/2nbk47Z What is the true cost of carbon emissions? Claire Jones - FT One of the many challenges facing attempts to green the economy is gauging an "acceptable" price for carbon emissions. /on.ft.com/2ncfBC5 Why I'm Worried About the Repo Market; It's hard to predict how the financial system will handle shocks. Narayana Kocherlakota - Bloomberg The recent unrest in money markets, which briefly caused short-term interest rates to get out of the Federal Reserve's control, won't undermine the central bank's ability to achieve its longer-term economic goals. That said, it does signal that something's very wrong with the financial system. /bloom.bg/2n6OwQs Why A Data Revolution Is Giving Socially Responsible Investors an Edge Matthew Heimer - Fortune It's getting a lot easier to align your financial strategy with your conscience. A report issued to clients this week by BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research makes an unusually strong data-driven case for "ESG investing"—taking companies' environmental impact, social impact, and governance into account when deciding whether to buy their stocks. The report's takeaway: If you're not using ESG analysis, you may be leaving money on the table. bit.ly/2nbROlD 'Investing in a simple index fund is immoral' — why climate-change investing has been more talk than action; Just 4% of company 401(k) retirement plans offer the choice of a 'socially responsible' mutual fund as one of its investment options Brett Arends - MarketWatch It isn't about Greta Thunberg. Sure, the 16-year old Swedish activist just boosted the attention given to the climate-change crisis with her passionate speech at the United Nations. /on.mktw.net/2n3V3eH The art and science of stewarding the S&P 500 Matthew De Silva - Quartz Since 1995, David Blitzer has been one of the most influential figures in stock markets around the world. He isn't a household name, but as longtime chair of the index committee for S&P Global, Blitzer led the team that decides which companies go into the all-important S&P 500 index. bit.ly/2lFQDKD
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Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | CLSA trading head joins outsourced trading firm Tourmaline as MD; Industry veteran Rowley Aird spent almost six years with CLSA, most recently has head of trading and execution services in Europe. Hayley McDowell - The Trade The head of trading in Europe at Hong Kong-based broker CLSA has departed to join outsourced trading company Tourmaline Partners, as MiFID II continues to drive 'supplemental trading'. bit.ly/2ltfxgN Woodford offloads IP Group shares in cut-price sale; Former star fund manager disposes of 142m shares in FTSE 250 group for around £76m Peter Smith and Bryce Elder- FT Neil Woodford, the former star fund manager, has conducted a hasty cut-price sale of IP Group after dumping his stake of 142m shares in the FTSE 250 intellectual property incubator for around £76m. /on.ft.com/2lD4QrS Hedge funds join the hunt for the ESG 'factor'; Overlapping characteristics and a lack of data have made search for ethical or 'responsible' stocks difficult Laurence Fletcher - FT It is one of the big puzzles of modern investing — how to do well, from doing good. Big-name hedge funds such as Man Group and Caxton Associates are among those hunting for reliable ways of identifying stocks with strong or improving ESG (environmental, social and governance) characteristics that are likely to beat the market more often than not. /on.ft.com/2n2L5Ky DE Shaw: hedge fund caught up in a talent war; The legal battle with a former star manager shows the risks of open conflicts with one-time money-spinners Lindsay Fortado and Robin Wigglesworth - FT The legal war between one of the world's biggest and most secretive hedge funds and one of its former star money managers saw an unlikely new front open up this year: the exclusive Hudson National Golf Club in Westchester. /on.ft.com/2liyJgY Total Farm Marketing by Stewart-Peterson Reveals New Approach to Farm Marketing Solutions PRWeb TFM unveils holistic solutions and centralized ag intelligence to address the total needs of farmers. Stewart-Peterson Group Inc. and its family of companies, providing farm marketing solutions for over 35 years, has announced a new farmer-focused initiative to incorporate its suite of services under a newly minted name that reflects its approach to risk management: Total Farm Marketing (TFM) by Stewart-Peterson at totalfarmmarketing.com. bit.ly/2lsPaaN Jamie Dimon Can't Wriggle Out of WeWork So Easily; The CEO took pains to develop close ties with the office-space company and its founder. That commitment could backfire. Shuli Ren - Bloomberg Until recently, things were looking bright for JPMorgan Chase & Co. The lender emerged as a big winner from the global financial crisis; and under the leadership of Jamie Dimon, had managed to notch fast growth in retail deposits. The company's share price has gained more than 200% since 2008, compared with 27% at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley's flat performance. /bloom.bg/2luPupt
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Regions | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | KKR weighs pivot towards tech with $300m Asia fund; US private equity group long known for buyouts eyes move into early-stage investing Henny Sender - FT KKR, the alternative investment company whose name has long been synonymous with buyouts, is taking concrete steps into the world of early stage investing. /on.ft.com/2lFseou India Central Bank Denies Rumors of Bank Closures Suvashree Ghosh - Bloomberg Indian authorities are scrambling to suppress speculation about bank closures a day after the regulator imposed restrictions on a local lender, the latest indication of how jittery savers are amid a slowing economy and scandals in the financial system. /bloom.bg/2na6D8g Asia's payment companies generate more revenue than almost the rest of the world combined John Detrixhe - Quartz Payments generated a whopping $1.9 trillion of revenue last year, according to research from McKinsey. As digital transactions displace those using cash, financial companies in Asia Pacific took home more of that money than almost all other regions combined. bit.ly/2n6VaWU A Record $85 Billion Japan Bond Frenzy Is About to Reverse Ayai Tomisawa - Bloomberg Firms issued a record 9 trillion yen of bonds this fiscal half; Windfall for arrangers is set to fade as tax hike also looms Japan's corporate bond bankers have been racking up underwriting fees from a record frenzy of note sales. They now face leaner months ahead. /bloom.bg/2n9boyN China's Soybean Move Lands With a Thud for U.S. Farmers Brendan Murray - Bloomberg China's latest gesture of goodwill in its trade war with the U.S. isn't having much of an immediate effect where it matters most for President Donald Trump: on struggling American farms. /bloom.bg/2n5SuJ3 Harvard Was 'Freaking Out': How a $270 Million Brazil Bet Tanked; Biggest endowment struggled to unload a troubled investment. Michael McDonald and Tatiana Freitas - Bloomberg Colin Butterfield was frantic. The Harvard University endowment executive wanted to unload a disastrous $270 million investment in Brazilian farmland. But the school had no takers, and it was burning through millions of dollars. /bloom.bg/2nblXl2
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Brexit | Financials stories regarding the decision of the United Kingdom to leave the European Union | Humiliated Johnson's Brexit plan in disarray after explosive judgment; Normally bullish No 10 team left with no option but to accept justices' ruling George Parker - FT When Boris Johnson walked into his impromptu war room at New York's Westin Grand Central hotel, shortly after 5.30am on Tuesday, his weary staff were waiting for him. "It's a constitutional crisis," said one aide, still digesting the Supreme Court's explosive intervention in British politics. /on.ft.com/2n56iDG Santander takes EUR1.5bn hit on UK business as Brexit looms;= Spanish owner of Abbey National blames EU withdrawal and new regulations Nicholas Megaw - FT Santander has taken a EUR1.5bn writedown on the value of its UK business, blaming new regulations and the expected economic fallout from Brexit. /on.ft.com/2n8xwJM Boris Johnson flies home to face the anger of parliament; Rees-Mogg dubs Supreme Court decision overturning PM's move a 'constitutional coup' George Parker and Jane Croft, Sebastian Payne and Laura Hughes - FT A chastened Boris Johnson has arrived back in London to face calls for his resignation after Britain's Supreme Court overruled his attempt to stop MPs from debating Brexit, in a ruling that one senior minister called a "constitutional coup". /on.ft.com/2n25oYz The Day After Brexit: What a Crash Out of the EU Might Look Like Joe Mayes and Alex Morales - Bloomberg This account of the first 24 hours of a no-deal Brexit is based on interviews, government documents, and academic research. The people described are real, as are their views on Brexit. Dialogue is real and faithfully rendered from actual interactions but projected into the near future. /bloom.bg/2n5D4o9 At U.N., Johnson jokes some British politicians want endless Brexit Michelle Nichols, Mohammed, Tom Hogue - Reuters British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday joked that if some British members of parliament had their way Brexit would be an endless process like the torment of the Greek mythological figure Prometheus. According to the online Encyclopedia Britannica, the Greek god Zeus punished Prometheus for stealing fire from the gods by securing him to a mountain and sending an eagle to eat his liver, which regrows only to be eaten again and again. /reut.rs/2l881rq Another Nail In Brexit's Coffin Clem Chambers - Forbes Today the U.K. Supreme Court overruled the U.K. government's suspension of parliament. This is half way between a shock turn up or an obvious outcome depending on your model of what's going on. My opinion since the Brexit referendum passed was that Brexit would be killed because while the populace were in favor of British independence, the elite were squarely Europhiles and "Europeans." bit.ly/2l3iaWh
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