| February 14, 2022 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | |  | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
John goofed on Friday. There will not be one big exchange leader panel, but two panels, both moderated by Walt Lukken. Here is the breakdown for the panels.
9:30 a.m. Wednesday
- Terrance A. Duffy, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, CME Group
- Adena Friedman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Nasdaq
- Loh Boon Chye, Chief Executive Officer, SGX Group
- Michael Peters, Chief Executive Officer, Eurex Frankfurt AG
- Edward Tilly, Chief Executive Officer, Cboe Global Markets
2:15 p.m. Wednesday
Nasdaq announced the retirement of Market Technology EVP Lars Ottersgård, who leaves after 16 years and will transition into an advisory role on April 20, 2022. In his place, Nasdaq is appointing Jamie King and Roland Chai to head the anti-financial crime and market infrastructure technology businesses, respectively, and both will report directly to Nasdaq President and CEO Adena Friedman.
Max Butti joined SIX Digital Exchange as head of equities. Previously, Butti was at London Stock Exchange Group where he was a group account director the last two years after previously serving as head of business development. Butti started his career as a trader on the SOFFEX.
The CME Group on Friday announced record volume in Soybean options and record volume and open interest records in both SOFR futures and SOFR options based on February 10 trading.
One FTX Super Bowl commercial right before halftime featured comedian, writer and producer Larry David, who played an idiot via several characters throughout history who had been wrong every time. The last time is when he is being told about crypto. This was my vote for the best commercial at the Super Bowl. The message aligned nicely with convincing people to adopt this new digital asset.
The sneaky best/worst commercial was the Coinbase commercial that crashed the company's website that featured a floating QR code on a television screen with an elf on the shelf in the corner. If you followed the QR code to the website, you could redeem $15 in bitcoin by signing up for a Coinbase account. Coinbase did get a lot of publicity for its commercial due to the crash, and its app soared to number two on the App Store, The Block reported.
Bloomberg is reporting on a poll conducted by management consultancy Advanced Workplace Associates that showed just 3% of white collar workers want a full office return and a full 86% want to work from home at least two days a week.
I am happy to report that JLN Editor-in-Chief Sarah Rudolph is back home after a brief return trip to the hospital last week and says she is feeling much better.
In honor of Valentine's Day, here is a video from the FTC that is part of the "Dating or Defrauding?" Campaign from the FTC, CFTC and three other U.S. agencies. It is titled "Online Romance Imposter Scams."
My former Price Group colleague Kurt A. Jaderholm is now a guest services associate at Topgolf in Schaumburg, IL. Kurt was once the trading floor desk boss of Tom Price, owner of The Price Group, when Tom was a runner on the floor of the CME and first getting his feet wet on the trading floor in Chicago.
Have a great day and stay safe and treat people the same way you want to be treated: with respect, equality and justice.~JJL
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CFTC Testifies for more Crypto Authority; Cboe Launches First New Canadian Offering; Regulators Warns against Online Dating Scams
JohnLothianNews.com
Alex Perry's Optionstopia takes a look at this week's options news highlights: Ethereum's Daily Options Volume Matches Bitcoin; Crypto Exchanges Airing Super Bowl Commercials; Cboe's MATCHNow Technology Migration
John talks about "Dating or Defrauding" & Super Bowl Crypto in John's Take
"European-Style Options" is the Term of the Week with tastytrade's Jermal Chandler.
Watch the video »
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Himalaya yogi ran India's top bourse as puppet master, regulator says
Abhirup Roy - Reuters
The former head of India's largest stock exchange shared confidential information with a yogi and sought his advice on crucial decisions, a probe by the market regulator has found, ahead of the bourse's much-awaited public listing. In a case of "bizarre misconduct" that was a "glaring breach" of regulations, Chitra Ramkrishna, the former chief executive of National Stock Exchange (NSE), shared information including the bourse's financial projections, business plans and board agenda with a purported spiritual guru in the Himalayas, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) said.
/jlne.ws/33iTEXl
***** Sounds like the former head of the stock exchange made a big boo boo.~JJL
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Super Bowl LVI will be 'the single biggest sports betting event in history,' FanDuel CEO says
Josh Schafer - Yahoo Finance
Super Bowl LVI, will be a "banner weekend" for sports gambling companies, according to FanDuel ($PDYPY) CEO Amy Howe. With additional states legalizing mobile sports betting over the last year, coupled with a growing interest from the general public, FanDuel's volume during the NFL playoffs has quadrupled year-over-year.
/jlne.ws/3JorBF9
***** Get ready for the gambling addiction that will be forthcoming. Are we prepared? Nope!~JJL
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The weird correlation between the Super Bowl and the stock market
Ihsaan Fanusie - Yahoo Finance
A good day for the offenses in this year's Super Bowl could mean a good year for the stock market is in store, according to new data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. Super Bowls in which the final combined score was higher than 45 points, the stock market returns 15.9% on average, while returns average only 8.2% when the combined score is 45 or less. Before you go and fire your financial advisor and replace them with a subscription to ESPN+, you should know that the dataset is somewhat tongue-in-cheek. "This data is not intended to represent a fundamental analysis of market trends or historical data and in no way is intended to be the basis for any investment decisions whatsoever," writes S&P Global Market Intelligence.
/jlne.ws/3gIbsho
***** Correlation and causation are different things. ~JJL
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IGS Director: U.S. Falling Behind in STEM Education
Joanne Morrison - University of Maryland Baltimore
While the United States has been a leader in many advances in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), the state of education in this area and access in the U.S. is on the decline, warned Claire M. Fraser, PhD, director and founder of the University of Maryland School of Medicine's (UMSOM) Institute for Genome Sciences, a pioneer in the field of microbial genomics, and the outgoing president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
/jlne.ws/34Lw7P3
***** Joanne Morrison, formerly of the FIA, had to share this bad news with us. Thank you and argh!~JJL
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TRADE Talks: How NOT to fall in love...
Kiays Khalil - The Trade
In a special Valentine's Day edition, The TRADE News Team take a look at the pitfalls of romance when it comes to falling in love with your stock selections - and how to avoid falling into the trap. With special guest Clare Flynn Levy, Founder and CEO at Essentia Analytics.
/jlne.ws/34Pjqml
***** I am not in love with my stock selections, although I do seem to love them more and more as the price goes down and I buy more and more. Hmmm.~JJL
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Friday's Top Three
Our most read story last Friday was Bloomberg's The Billion-Dollar Nickel-Swap Scandal That Shocked Singapore. I feel there should be an "If I had a nickel for every time..." joke here but I can't think of one. If only I had a nickel for every time that has happened. For the second time the VinePair story, We Asked 11 Sommeliers: Which Wine Do You Wish People Ordered More? made our list (at #2). I really am feeling more connected to our readers than ever. Third was the Financial Times' One Wall Street: the residential takeover of a banking behemoth.
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| All MarketsWiki Sponsors» | | | | | | | John Lothian News (JLN) is the news division of John J. Lothian & Company, Inc. (JJLCO). The online media and financial services firm is staffed by derivatives industry, journalism and technology professionals. | | | | | | | John Lothian News Editorial Staff: | | | John Lothian
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| Lead Stories | How Crypto.com is betting big on sports partnerships to reach a billion users
Hannah Lang - Reuters
Crypto companies are betting sports advertising will help them go mainstream, and none have made a bigger splash than Crypto.com with a commercial on Sunday's Super Bowl and a $700 million deal last year to rename the Staples Center in Los Angeles as the Crypto.com Arena. Little known a year ago, the privately owned Singapore company ran a flashy Super Bowl ad alongside such as Budweiser, GM and Pringles, as well as rival crypto platforms, in a push to dramatically grow its user base.
/jlne.ws/3oP93Gp
Waning stockpiles drive widespread global commodity crunch; 'Unprecedented' base metal shortage coincides with rush for raw materials and food staples
Neil Hume and Emiko Terazono - FT
Stockpiles of some of the global economy's most important commodities are at historically low levels, as booming demand and supply shortages threaten to fuel inflationary pressures around the world. From industrial metals to energy to agriculture, the rush for raw materials and food staples has been reflected in futures markets, where a large number of commodities have flipped into backwardation — a pricing structure that signals scarcity.
/jlne.ws/3BkBoJE
Nasdaq Announces Retirement of Market Technology EVP Lars Ottersgård; Appoints New Leadership to Anti-Financial Crime and Market Infrastructure Technology Businesses; Consolidates Legal & Regulatory Functions and Group Risk Management Responsibilities
Nasdaq
Nasdaq, Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ), today announced the retirement of Lars Ottersgård, Executive Vice President for Market Technology, after 16 years providing leadership to the organization. Ottersgård will transition into an advisory role on April 30, 2022, until his formal retirement on August 31. As a result, the company is appointing two senior leaders - Jamie King and Roland Chai - to drive forward its Anti-Financial Crime and Market Infrastructure Technology businesses, respectively, and both will report directly to Nasdaq President and CEO Adena Friedman.
/jlne.ws/3LzKkzq
HSBC to Double Some Junior Banker Bonuses in Race for Talent
Ambereen Choudhury, Harry Wilson, and Denise Wee - Bloomberg
More senior staff are in line for at least 10% bonus uplift; HSBC shrank the bonus pool for GBM unit by 15% for 2020
HSBC Holdings Plc plans to as much as double bonuses for some of its junior investment bankers and traders in a bid to catch up with rivals on compensation. The lender, which paid less than most rivals a year ago after cutting the bonus pool at its global banking and markets division by 15%, wants to avoid losing junior staff to Wall Street firms who have been consistently raising pay, according to people familiar with the matter. More senior employees are said to be in line for 2021 bonus hikes of at least 10%, the people said, declining to be identified as the details are private.
/jlne.ws/3GNpfhm
HSBC trims private bank staff and reduces office space in Switzerland; Lender relocates some workers to cheaper countries as it continues cost-cutting push
Stephen Morris and Joshua Franklin - FT
HSBC is cutting 110 support staff in Switzerland and scaling back its office space in Geneva following a bad year for its Swiss private bank, during which wealthy clients withdrew a net $1bn of their money. Employees at the lender's Quai des Bergues office in the city centre were told on Monday last week that two floors of the building would be shut down and more staff would have to share desks "to help use our office space in the most efficient way".
/jlne.ws/34DG2qc
Digital currencies carry threats as well as promises; The proliferation of new financial technologies calls for better cross-border regulation and supervision
Eswar Prasad - FT
The emergence of digital currencies, both private and official, is shaking up domestic and international finance. This will yield many benefits but some things will remain much the same. There are risks, too, with developing economies potentially finding themselves on the wrong side of a widening global financial divide.
/jlne.ws/3sHdDr8
A 29-year-old CEO is pushing crypto during the Super Bowl by giving away millions in bitcoin
Nitasha Tiku - Washington Post
Americans tuning in to the Super Bowl on Sunday will be inundated with ads from cryptocurrency companies, including the trading platform FTX, which plans to give away millions of dollars in bitcoin. FTX has spent heavily on sports partnerships to try to make itself a brand name in crypto, including an ad with NFL star Tom Brady, a sponsorship with Major League Baseball and a $135 million deal to rename the Miami Heat's stadium the FTX Arena.
/jlne.ws/3BhcESx
Super Bowl commercial causes crypto currency website to crash
Stephen Proctor - Yahoo
Outside of Matthew Stafford and the Rams winning Super Bowl LVI, ads for crypto currency predictably ruled the airwaves Sunday. Some of the commercials featured superstars like Larry David and LeBron James, but the ad that got the most attention was one in which very little happened whatsoever. An ad for Coinbase simply featured a QR code slowly bouncing around the screen for nearly a minute with music playing in the background. This commercial deserved recognition for two reasons. One, because at one point the QR code hit perfectly in the corner. And two, because so many people scanned the code that the app crashed. Viewers found the irony of spending millions on a Super Bowl ad but not doing enough to keep the site from crashing pretty funny.
/jlne.ws/3sxCWvG
Coinbase Forced to Throttle Traffic After Super Bowl Ad Surge
Tim Smith - Bloomberg
Coinbase Global Inc., the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, said it was back up and running after having to throttle traffic earlier in the evening following the release of an ad during the Super Bowl.
/jlne.ws/34UqvCj
Coinbase Stock Is Falling. Its Super Bowl Ad Was Too Successful.
Ben Levisohn - Barron's
Coinbase Global (ticker: COIN) ran an ad during the Super Bowl that included a QR code that would send viewers to its website. Coinbase stock has fallen 1.7% to $191.26 at 6:23 a.m. in premarket trading, and it's possible that shares are reacting to the company's inability to handle that much traffic. On the other hand, Coinbase seemed to have gotten what it paid for with the advertisement.
/jlne.ws/3gH91fa
Crypto groups take top slots at the Super Bowl; Digital currency platforms join typical line-up of beer and car ads during biggest game in American football
Alistair Gray and Joshua Oliver - FT
Advertisers have forked out up to $7mn for 30 seconds of television airtime during the Super Bowl as cryptocurrency platforms join the usual parade of beer and car companies beaming messages into America's living rooms.
/jlne.ws/3BfwSvO
Crypto Rush Sweeps European Football Clubs in Need of Cash
David Hellier and Ben Bartenstein - Bloomberg
Crystal Palace and Sevilla did deals for fan tokens this week; Other big teams are said to be in talks with Binance
There's no let-up in European football's breakneck pursuit of money from the world of crypto. In the past week alone, Spanish club Sevilla and English Premier League team Crystal Palace launched tokens that allow supporters to buy services and vote on issues such as the color of the team's shirts. Manchester United, the biggest club in England by number of fans, agreed to a sponsorship deal with Tezos, a blockchain company.
/jlne.ws/3uI4st9
New York crypto couple implicated in 'heist of the century'; Husband and wife charged with attempting to launder $3.6bn of stolen bitcoin led colourful lives
Madison Darbyshire - FT
In June of 2020, Heather Morgan wrote a column for Forbes that was headlined, "Experts Share Tips To Protect Your Business From Cybercriminals". Now US authorities are alleging she was more of an expert than she let on. On Tuesday, the entrepreneur and budding rapper was arrested and charged with attempting to launder more than $3.6bn in stolen bitcoin with her husband, Ilya Lichtenstein, as the US government took control of $3.6bn of bitcoin — the largest financial seizure in the history of the Department of Justice.
/jlne.ws/3rH5HqK
Arm's flotation on Nasdaq 'a huge potential blow' to London; Baillie Gifford's James Anderson says planned New York IPO would be vote of no confidence
Harriet Agnew, Daniel Thomas and Philip Stafford - FT
When SoftBank swooped six years ago to buy Arm Holdings for £24.3bn, Baillie Gifford opposed the deal. But the Scottish fund manager failed to garner enough support from fellow shareholders to rebuff the approach, said James Anderson, joint manager of Baillie Gifford's £20.7bn Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust.
/jlne.ws/3Jm34AC
Crypto Lender BlockFi to Pay $100 Million In Settlement with SEC, States
Matt Robinson, Joe Light, and Zeke Faux - Bloomberg
Settlement with SEC and states could come as soon as next week; BlockFi faces probes into selling unregistered securities
BlockFi Inc. is poised to pay $100 million to settle allegations from the Securities and Exchange Commission and state regulators that it illegally offered a product that pays customers high interest rates to lend out their digital tokens, according to people familiar with the matter.
/jlne.ws/3uMkliu
The Inside Scoop on the Booming Crypto Job Market
Coindesk Video
"Community Crypto" gets an overview of the hot crypto jobs market from three people whose organizations manage crypto/ blockchain jobs boards and have detailed knowledge of the companies, roles and trends offering job seekers a wide range of opportunities in the space. Joining Isaiah Jackson are Sandra Ro of the Global Blockchain Business Council, Colton Sakamoto, Pomp Crypto Jobs co-founder and Cleve Mesidor of the Blockchain Association.
/jlne.ws/3uSORXI
Former Goldman Sachs banker to stand trial over 1MDB scandal; Roger Ng has been charged with conspiring to launder billions embezzled from Malaysian state investment fund
Save
Stefania Palma and Joshua Franklin - FT
A former Goldman Sachs banker charged in connection with the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal will stand trial in New York on Monday, more than three years after his arrest. Roger Ng, a former managing director at Goldman Sachs, was arrested in Malaysia in 2018 at the request of US authorities and charged with conspiring to bribe officials and launder billions of dollars from the Malaysian state investment fund. He was later sent back to the US to face the charges.
/jlne.ws/3v4apB9
OCC Advances Technology Overhaul
Anna Lyudvig - Traders Magazine
OCC, the world's largest equity derivatives clearing organization, is working towards a complete replacement of its technology, according to John P. Davidson, Chief Executive Officer. Through investments in hardware and software, OCC's clearing system has handled huge growth in volume: "In January, we cleared 63 million contracts in a single day. Five years ago, that was a good week," Davidson said.
/jlne.ws/36e71Jq
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | States Ease Mask Mandates, but Should You Still Wear a Mask? Mask rules in the U.S. are shifting again. Here's how to assess your own risks.
Alex Janin - WSJ
Falling Covid-19 case rates are prompting more states to ease masking requirements. The changes mean that when—or whether—to wear a mask is becoming more of an individual decision. There are several factors to weigh when making decisions about masking, doctors say. Among them are your own health, the vulnerability of people in your household, local case rates and your vaccination status. Doctors say it can make sense to take precautions even as governments pull back.
/jlne.ws/3oN3CYl
The Era of Pandemic Restrictions Is Fast Coming to an End
Fergal O'Brien, Tim Loh, and James Paton - Bloomberg
Politicians risk missing lessons in the rush for the exit; Health experts say governments need to use the lull to prepare
The era of coronavirus restrictions is fading away, but that doesn't mean Covid-19 is gone. Governments are racing to scrap the last remaining pandemic measures, eager to reset the world after two years of dramatic upheaval. Even slow-mover Germany is planning to unwind curbs next week, despite setting records for infections on a daily basis.
/jlne.ws/3syc9zD
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | CME Group Announces Record Soybean Options Volume, Record European Agricultural Volume on February 10
CME Group
CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, today announced that a record 291,840 Soybean options contracts were traded on February 10, 2022, surpassing the previous record of 284,838 options on May 10, 2016. Also on February 10, a record 601,447 agricultural product futures and options contracts were traded across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
/jlne.ws/34BdLk7
SOFR Futures and Options Set Multiple Records on February 10 as SOFR-Based Liquidity Continues to Grow
CME Group
Record 2.07 million SOFR futures contracts traded; Record SOFR futures open interest of 3.2 million contracts; Record 130,200 SOFR options contracts traded; Record SOFR options open interest of 656,977 contracts
CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, today announced that SOFR futures surpassed 2 million contracts for the first time, reaching a new, single-day trading volume record of 2,069,531 contracts and setting a new open interest (OI) record of 3,236,499 contracts on February 10. SOFR options also reached a record 130,200 contracts traded yesterday and set a new OI record of 656,977 contracts.
/jlne.ws/3oN0KuE
Australian Recycler Neometals Seeks LSE Listing as Green Appeal Grows
Ryan Hesketh - Bloomberg
Australian minerals recycler Neometals Ltd plans a secondary listing on the London Stock Exchange, widening the pool of potential investors seeking to tap into green assets. Admission of the ordinary shares to trading on LSE's AIM Market is expected to take place on Feb. 28, the West Perth, WA, Australia-based company said in a statement on Monday.
/jlne.ws/3oM0wUE
Hedge funds and asset managers turning to peer-to-peer trading to reduce costs, CME data finds; Data collated by CME Group found that last year hedge funds and asset managers traded passively 64% and 37% of the time.
Annabel Smith - The Trade
Buy-side institutions are increasingly turning to peer-to-peer forms of trading, using algorithms and trading passively to reduce costs, data by CME has found. According to data collected on the exchange operator's listed FX futures market, trading in EUR/USD FX futures positions saw hedge funds achieve passive execution 64% of the time while asset managers traded passively 37% of the time.
/jlne.ws/3uPQgyq
BidFX partners with OSTTRA to support OTC FX clearing; Through the partnership, BidFX clients will be able to submit trades directly to leading CCPs.
Wesley Bray - The Trade
Electronic foreign exchange trading solutions provider, BidFX, is offering investment managers support for FX clearing via OSTTRA's clearing connectivity service. Through the integration with OSTTRA's clearing connectivity solution, BidFX clients will be able to submit trades directly to leading CCPs.
/jlne.ws/34FTkm3
HYON lists on Euronext Growth Oslo
Euronext
Second listing in 2022 on Oslo Børs, and the seventh listing on Euronext markets; Market capitalisation of approximately NOK 130 million
Oslo Børs, part of the Euronext Group, today congratulates HYON on its admission to Euronext Growth Oslo (ticker: HYON). This is the second admission on Oslo Børs' markets in 2022.
/jlne.ws/3HO7Sy9
Euro Fixed Income Futures: Definition of reporting and position limits for March 2022
Eurex
Position limits apply only to long positions in the front month contracts of the products concerned. Reporting limits will be valid from 28 February 2022 after close of trading until 3 March 2022 after close of trading.
/jlne.ws/3sF35cb
MSCI Index derivatives: Introduction of additional products, extension of terms and a new incentive component
Eurex
The Management Board of Eurex Deutschland took the following decisions:
Introduction of Futures on four MSCI Indices (MSCI Germany, MSCI Israel, MSCI Europe ESG Screened, MSCI EMU ESG Screened) and Options on two MSCI Indices (MSCI China, MSCI Saudi Arabia), effective 21 February 2022; Extension of the term of three MSCI Futures (MSCI EM, EAFE, World), effective 21 February 2022
Inclusion of the new products into the existing Liquidity Provider Schemes (as of 1 March 2022);
Introduction of a new incentive component ("stipends") into the existing Liquidity provider scheme (as of 1 March 2022)
/jlne.ws/3gHwP2D
Suspension of HKFE Participantship
HKEX
Exchange Participants are requested to note that the HKFE Participantship of the following
Exchange Participant has been suspended pursuant to Rule 706 of the Rules, Regulation and
Procedures of the Futures Exchange ("HKFE Rules") until further notice. Nerico Brothers Limited 14 February 2022
/jlne.ws/3JuwFaX
REMINDER - Panel Member Selection Committee invites nominations from Exchange and Clearing Participants of candidates to the Cash Market Consultative Panel, Derivatives Market Consultative Panel and Clearing
Consultative Panel (collectively "Consultative Panels")
HKEX
The Panel Member Selection Committee ("the Committee") is pleased to invite nominations from Participants
of the stock and futures exchanges ("Exchange Participants") and their respective clearing houses ("Clearing
Participants") of suitable candidates to the Consultative Panels for consideration and approval.
/jlne.ws/3gLSJ4B
SGX reports market statistics for January 2022
SGX
Strong start to the year as derivatives volume rises to four-month high; SGX welcomes inaugural batch of SPAC listings to Mainboard;
Singapore Exchange (SGX) today released its market statistics for January 2022. Market participants weighed global growth prospects against an array of concerns including elevated inflation and continuing challenges to supply chains, bolstering risk-management activity across asset classes.
Derivatives traded volume on SGX rose 3% month-on-month (m-o-m) in January to about 20 million contracts, the highest since September 2021. Equity index futures volume climbed 7% m-o-m to 15.1 million contracts, with steady activity in SGX FTSE China A50 Index Futures amid signs that China's economic expansion could slow in the near term. SGX Nifty 50 Index Futures, SGX FTSE Taiwan Index Futures as well as SGX MSCI Singapore Index Futures were among m-o-m volume gainers.
/jlne.ws/3Bh7l5D
Redesign of "Listed Company Search" Pages
JPX
The "Listed Company Search" pages will be redesigned on February 28, 2022. The redesign will include changes to URLs, extensions to the display periods for disclosure documents and other documents, and changes to page layouts.
/jlne.ws/3GQeeMl
JPX Begins Research on "Digitally Tracked Green Bonds" Utilizing Security Tokens
JPX
As part of its efforts to achieve carbon neutrality across group companies, as well as to improve the overall operational efficiency of bond issuance through digitalization, Japan Exchange Group, Inc. (JPX) has started looking into raising funds through issuance of security tokens in the form of a "Digitally Tracked Green Bond" using technology from BOOSTRY.
/jlne.ws/3GHvfs4
-- Performance Bond Requirements: Interest Rate Margins - Effective February 14, 2022 - CME
-- Notice of Summary Actions; MEMBER FIRM: INTERACTIVE BROKERS LLC; RULE VIOLATION: Rule 576. IDENTIFICATION OF GLOBEX TERMINAL OPERATORS - CME
-- Block Trades 11 Feb 2022 - CME
-- Correction to Previously Announced CME Globex Pre-Open Hours for CME, CBOT, NYMEX and COMEX Futures and Options Contracts
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | TNS Announces Independent 'Managed Services versus DIY' Report Findings
TNS
A new independent report 'Colocation of Financial Markets Trading Infrastructure', has been released today and identifies the pros and cons of in-house management (a "DIY" approach) versus a managed service model. Sponsored by Transaction Network Services (TNS), the report features an in-depth decision framework and serves as a vital aid for trading firms that are considering which option to adopt, or whether a hybrid strategy would best suit their needs.
/jlne.ws/3JrbJSs
Stitch Raises $21 Million for African Fintech Market Expansion
Samuel Gebre - Bloomberg
A South African startup that's building software infrastructure for the continent's growing fintech sector has raised $21 million in a round led by New York's Spruce House Partnership. Other new investors in Cape Town-based Stitch include PayPal Ventures, TrueLayer and Village Global. The company plans to use the cash to expand into new markets and products, co-founder & Chief Executive Officer Kiaan Pillay said in an emailed statement.
/jlne.ws/34Ugghk
BofA to Offer Card-Free Online Purchases After Banked Investment
Aisha S Gani - Bloomberg
U.S. lender heads $20 million investment in U.K. startup; Banked enables online payment direct from mobile banking apps
Bank of America Corp. has led a $20 million funding round into U.K. startup Banked Ltd., a tie up that will give customers of e-commerce companies in the U.K. the option to make card-free purchases. The U.S. lender is teaming up with the fintech to offer a 'Pay by Bank' solution that will enable users to pay online directly via their bank accounts, streamlining the checkout process and reducing the amount of customer data that vendors need to store. It will also avoid card processing fees.
/jlne.ws/3uN4S1v
ION joins the International Capital Market Association; As a new associate member of the International Capital Markets Association, ION joins a group of over 600 institutional members in over 60 jurisdictions.
Wesley Bray - The Trade
Trading, analytics and capital markets risk management solutions provider, ION, has joined the International Capital Market Association (ICMA). As an associate member ION will work alongside ICMA and other members to support the transition to automated workflows by traders and institutions.
/jlne.ws/3oHSMmz
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | Russia Sentences Man Who Claimed to Hack Clinton, RIA Reports
Jake Rudnitsky - Bloomberg
Konstanin Kozlovsky given 14-year term by Yekaterinburg court; He made unconfirmed claim the FSB hired him to hack the DNC
A Russian court sentenced the leader of a hacking gang to 14 years in prison, RIA Novosti reported, bringing an end to a trial in which the man claimed to have helped the country's security service to hack Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. Konstanin Kozlovsky was convicted of organizing a criminal ring and large-scale fraud after the Lurk gang stole more than 1.2 billion rubles ($15.6 million) from December 2015 to April 2016 using trojan malware, the news service reported from the court in Yekaterinburg. Other members of the group received sentences of between five and 13 years, according to RIA.
/jlne.ws/34CVHWE
Comparing Legacy Rules-Based Cybersecurity Platforms And AI-Based Platforms
Igor Mezic - Forbes
Platforms leveraging analyst-written rules and supervised machine learning may have been considered the gold standard for network monitoring in the past, but the advancing threatscape means these platforms are becoming less effective at stopping modern cybercriminals.
I believe there's an urgent need for security analysts to move away from spending hours writing rules in an attempt to determine what is and is not OK. Even with this massive investment, SOC analysts only gain a rudimentary understanding of their own networks and have built a system of distracting false alerts — and more importantly, they miss threats that aren't seen like attacks using zero-day exploits.
/jlne.ws/3Bh5a1X
How To Play The Long Game In Cybersecurity
Leonard Kleinman - Forbes
The close of 2021 brought to light one of the biggest security vulnerabilities that cyber practitioners have seen in some time. I'm talking, of course, about Log4j, or Log4Shell as it's otherwise known.
According to public sources, an employee of Alibaba discovered and reported the Log4j remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability to Apache on November 24, 2021. It was tracked as CVE-2021-44228 and affects all versions of Log4j2 through to 2.14.1 and all operating systems from Windows to Linux. There have since been several fixes and code revisions from Apache, with some of the newer versions introducing their own vulnerabilities.
/jlne.ws/33kvCuV
Cybersecurity M&A volume reaches $77.5 billion in 2021: report
Jonathan Greig - ZDNet
Mergers and acquisitions in cybersecurity grew to $77.5 billion in 2021, according to research from cybersecurity consultancy Momentum.
In a report on 2021, the firm said 83 cybersecurity company capital raises surpassed $100 million. There were fourteen $1 billion mergers and acquisitions, including deals involving McAfee, Augh0, Mimecast, Thycotic, Proofpoint and Avast.
/jlne.ws/3rL7rzk
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | Triple-Digit Rewards of Staking Offer Crypto Winter Respite
Olga Kharif - Bloomberg
Ethereum is due to switch to staking-based system this year; On Solana, a slew of other chains, most coins are staked
The recent guidance provided by the U.S. Treasury Department on transaction reporting by crypto companies is shining some light on staking -- one of the least understood but hottest corners of the digital-asset world. Treasury indicated on Friday that "stakers" would be spared from forthcoming rules that are more targeted for brokers rather than investors using their tokens to help order transactions that create new blocks on various blockchain networks. That's especially good news for crypto investors seeking a refuge amid the recent downturn in coin prices.
/jlne.ws/33k9zoj
Andreessen's Dixon Spies Riches in Web3. Others See 'Rubbish'; The venture capitalist and other backers of the blockchain-based future of the internet view web3 as a game changer. But will anyone want to play?
Emily Nicolle - Bloomberg
For Andreessen Horowitz's Chris Dixon, there are billions of dollars at stake in the blockchain-based future of the internet known as web3. But even as the venture capitalist charms his investors with dreams of what this next stage could bring, his vision relies on an untested premise — chiefly, the presumption that if you build it, everyone will come. Will they, though?
/jlne.ws/3gGpekV
A Beginner's Guide to DAO, Killer of Hedge Funds and Corporate Structure; Here's a step-by-step guide to DAOs, the buzzy phenomenon in the cryptosphere.
Luc Olinga - The Street
A group of crypto enthusiasts last November shocked the world by raising tens of millions of dollars to buy a rare version of the U.S. Constitution, which was auctioned off by the venerable auction house Sotheby's. If ConstitutionDao lost on the wire against the billionaire hedge-fund manager Ken Griffin of Citadel, it won a symbolic victory, engraving in the collective memory the arrival and power of DAOs and a new form of investing.
/jlne.ws/3sGbPyG
U.S. is now the 'Bitcoin mining capital of the world:' GEM Mining CEO
Thomas Hum - Yahoo Finance
in 2021 when it first banned all domestic cryptocurrency mining in June and then outlawed cryptocurrencies completely in September. Following Beijing's decision, questions remained as to where large scale mining companies would move their operations to next, with China being responsible for much of their world's mining activity up until the crackdown.
/jlne.ws/3uNe4TG
Stablecoin regulation: Circle CEO provides perspective on latest updates
Jennifer Schonberger - Yahoo Finance Video
Circle Co-Founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire discusses stablecoins, cryptocurrency, and regulation with Yahoo Finance's Jennifer Schonberger.
KARINA CONTRERAS: All right. We will shift gears now and bring in our Yahoo Finance's Jen Schonberger. Stablecoin issuer Circle launched an ad campaign promoting Stablecoins over a central bank digital currency. That is China's CBDC is on full display at the Beijing Winter Olympics and also comes after a White House meeting this week tied to Stablecoin regulation. And Jen, you spoke with Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire about all of this, correct?
/jlne.ws/3rLIC6g
Coinbase Resumes Trading Feature After Vulnerability Warning
Yueqi Yang - Bloomberg
Earlier issue didn't affect simple trading on main platform; Advanced traders allowed to interact directly with order book
Coinbase Global Inc., the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, resumed operations of a recently launched advanced trading feature that was halted earlier when an unverified Twitter user warned of a possible vulnerability. A Coinbase spokesperson said the company is in touch with the Twitter user to learn more about the issue. Coinbase Chief Executive Officer Brian Armstrong also replied to the Twitter user, saying that the company would investigate.
/jlne.ws/3rJdd4d
The NFTs They Bought From The Crypto Rapper Disappeared. Now They Want A Refund.
Sarah Emerson - BuzzFeed News
Twitter user Ethmuppet said they scored "a piece of crypto history" when they purchased two NFTs from Heather Morgan, the eccentric entrepreneur arrested alongside her husband on Tuesday for attempting to launder $4.5 billion in looted cryptocurrency. But hours later, the NFTs were gone. They had suddenly disappeared from OpenSea, the NFT marketplace where Ethmuppet paid roughly $600 to own images made by Morgan's rap persona, Razzlekhan.
/jlne.ws/35Z2oTi
NFT marketplace shuts, citing 'rampant' fakes, plagiarism problem
Elizabeth Howcroft - Reuters
The platform which sold an NFT of Jack Dorsey's first tweet for $2.9 million has halted transactions because people were selling tokens of content that did not belong to them, its founder said, calling this a "fundamental problem" in the fast-growing digital assets market. Sales of NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, soared to around $25 billion in 2021, leaving many baffled as to why so much money is being spent on items that do not physically exist and which anyone can view online for free.
/jlne.ws/3ssGL5u
Jim Greco on HFT, Crypto and Starting An Exchange; Hide Not Slide
Welcome to another issue of Front Month, a newsletter covering the biggest stories in exchanges & market structure every Friday. Today's writeup marks the beginning of a new series of posts I'm excited to add to the newsletter - interviews with some of market structure's best & brightest. The number of people who've subscribed to Front Month has grown tremendously, surpassing 5,000 free readers as of a few days ago. Among them are experts in the fields of exchanges, high frequency trading and the market plumbing of almost every asset on the planet. I've spent the last two years sharing many of my opinions - it's time I hear from some of you!
/jlne.ws/3GLeWun
Coinbase popularity soars following mysterious advert during Super Bowl
Sean Dickens Coin Rivet
Following the hotly-contested battle of the exchanges at yesterday's Super Bowl,Coinbase came out on top after their mysterious QR-code advert proved to be a winner with viewers. The advert featured a floating QR code with a captivating soundtrack - which was seemingly inspired by the bouncing DVD logo meme - that led to a Coinbase landing page featuring promotional credits and competitions for signing up to the exchange.
/jlne.ws/3GMr5iI
Divorcing Couples Fight Over the Kids, the House and Now the Crypto; Dividing the family's Bitcoin stash has become a major source of contention in divorce cases.
David Yaffe-Bellany - NY Times
The divorce dragged on for eight years, almost as long as the marriage. The wealthy San Francisco couple sparred over child support, the profits from the sale of the husband's software company and the fate of their $3.6 million home. But the most consequential court battle between Erica and Francis deSouza concerned a bitter dispute over millions of dollars in missing Bitcoin.
/jlne.ws/3rMWbCn
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Congress stock trading risks 'unacceptable' weakening of trust, congressman says
Adriana Belmonte - Yahoo Finance
More lawmakers are rallying behind legislation to ban stock trading by members of Congress. Twenty-seven lawmakers recently wrote a letter urging House leaders to act quickly to bring "commonsense, bipartisan" legislation to the floor banning members of Congress from owning or trading stocks. And while Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) was not one of the signees, he still signaled support for passing such legislation, which he said "should" happen sometime this year.
/jlne.ws/3LywYne
Trump Fans Are Making DWAC the Best-Performing SPAC of Its Kind; Owning the stock can be a 'badge of honor' for supporters betting on the ex-president's new media company.
Sophie Alexander, Claire Ballentine, and Noah Buhayar - Bloomberg
In a cooling market for SPACs, the shell company tied to Donald Trump's new tech and media venture has recorded outsized stock gains. Supporters such as Rafael Morales help show why. "This is a bigger calling — this is my man Trump about to roll out a company," Morales, a 40-year-old military veteran from New York City, remembers thinking when he first heard about Digital World Acquisition Corp. He bought almost $100,000 worth at about $109 a share on Oct. 22, two days after the company announced a deal to merge with Trump Media & Technology Group.
/jlne.ws/34AQJK8
**** "An index of companies that went public through mergers with a SPAC is down 64% percent in the past year."
Ukraine Grain Shippers Say Russian Drills Risk Deterring Vessels
Volodymyr Verbyany - Bloomberg
Ukraine's grain shippers echoed assurances from the economy ministry that Russian naval drills shouldn't block access to the nation's ports, but warned that the uncertainty risks deterring some vessel owners.
/jlne.ws/3gJ7Rjq
NH Gov. Sununu launches cryptocurrency commission, seeks 'legal and regulatory certainty'
Todd Bookman - Portsmouth Herald
Gov. Chris Sununu is creating a commission to evaluate state and federal laws surrounding cryptocurrencies and make recommendations for how the digital currency industry can be regulated while encouraging innovation. In an executive order released Wednesday, Sununu said the state and federal government "must work to bring legal and regulatory certainty" to the burgeoning industry.
/jlne.ws/3sEhCVl
Congress stock trading ban could also cover cryptocurrencies: sources
Theo Wayt - NY Post
There's growing momentum on Capitol Hill for bills that would ban members of Congress from trading stocks — but the legislation would also likely apply to cryptocurrencies, The Post has learned. A forthcoming bill from Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) would bar members of Congress from owning or trading individual commodities, stocks or other securities that could produce conflicts of interest, a source familiar with the legislation said.
/jlne.ws/34UTAx8
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | For more regulatory, visit MarketsReformWiki, our website focused on current market reform efforts. | South Florida Man Sentenced to 7 Years in Federal Prison for Multi-Million Dollar Investment Scam Targeting the Elderly, and Spending Investor Money on Gambling, Jewelry, and Luxury Vehicles
U.S. Department of Justice
Yesterday, a federal district judge in Fort Lauderdale sentenced Isaac Grossman, 47, of Parkland, Florida, to 87 months in federal prison for directing an elder fraud scheme in which he sold stock in his South Florida-based technology company to elderly investors across the country, and then misappropriated the investors' funds for his own personal use.
/jlne.ws/3gG20uW
Regulators Accuse Investment Firm of Preying on Elderly; The SEC and CFTC allege an LA firm continues to target mostly elderly or retirement-aged victims as part of a precious metals scam.
Michael Katz - Chief Investment Officer
The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have charged a California investment adviser and its owner for allegedly scamming hundreds of investors who were at or near retirement age out of millions of dollars to invest in gold and silver coins.
/jlne.ws/3uLTwe0
Former FCA board member criticises Solvency II reforms; UK government and regulators should not decide insurance changes 'behind closed doors', says Mick McAteer
Josephine Cumbo and Laura Noonan - FT
The UK government and regulators have been accused of "doing deals behind closed doors" on insurance sector reforms that campaigners warn could expose millions of policyholders and pension savers to higher charges. Mick McAteer, a former board member of the Financial Conduct Authority, made the claim after the Financial Times reported that ministers and regulators were nearing a deal on reforms that could free up billions of pounds to invest in infrastructure.
/jlne.ws/3JpucPm
Freetrade ordered to remove social media posts by FCA; Regulator intervened after two posts by personal finance influencer
Akila Quinio - FT
Regulators ordered investment app Freetrade to delete social media promotions after flagging problems with the fast-growing company's partnership with a particular personal finance influencer. The Financial Conduct Authority this week published a ruling which revealed that it had in December instructed the app to delete all of its paid-for influencer posts "across all social media platforms" within 24 hours
/jlne.ws/3JpeWBM
Stablecoin firms should be regulated like the banks they are; Holders of the digital assets should have similar protections to depositors
Brendan Greeley - FT
In October of 2020, the Kansas banking commission closed down a state bank in Almena, a railroad town just below the border with Nebraska. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which guarantees consumer deposits at American banks, paid $18mn to make every depositor whole. It was an unremarkable intervention. The banking commission stepped in on a Friday, with no interruption in deposits over the weekend. This was the last time a bank failed in America.
/jlne.ws/3uPLf91
Israel's Securities Regulatory Chief Lays Out Crypto Plans
Sandali Handagama - Coindesk
The Israel Securities Authority (ISA) has big plans to regulate the country's fintech space. As a first step, it is hosting its first ever fintech hackathon
next month. The ISA is looking to attract blockchain-based solutions that can improve the infrastructure supporting the securities and sovereign debt markets in Israel with the hackathon. The securities regulator has partnered with the Ministry of Finance in Israel as well as tech providers like VMware, Digital Asset and Algorand to host the onsite hackathon, which will be held on March 24, 2022, in Tel Aviv.
/jlne.ws/3Bjkkne
U.K. Makes First Ever NFT Seizure in Crackdown on Tax Fraud
Emily Nicolle and Ellen Milligan - Bloomberg
HMRC seizes three NFTs, arrests three people in fraud probe; Case shows efforts to ward-off criminal activity in crypto
The U.K.'s tax watchdog seized three nonfungible tokens as part of a suspected case of value-added tax fraud worth 1.4 million pounds ($1.9 million), in the first ever domestic enforcement action of this kind. Three people have been arrested on suspicion of attempting to defraud the authority, allegedly using a web of 250 fake companies, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs said by email. Authorities also seized other crypto assets worth about 5,000 pounds, while the NFTs have yet to be valued.
/jlne.ws/3gMbll0
The SEC has shone a welcome light on financial darkness; Calls for audits of private funds and more transparency around fees and performance metrics are overdue
Rana Foroohar - FT
Perhaps the most devastating political legacy of the 2008 financial crisis was the sense among a large swath of the American population that the system was rigged. Homeowners and taxpayers took the fall, while big banks got bailed out and "nobody went to jail", as financial reform activists still frequently point out.
/jlne.ws/3JrNZNX
FCA makes buy now, pay later schemes redraft terms; Concerns mount in UK over market that quadrupled in 2020 to nearly £3bn
Siddharth Venkataramakrishnan - FT
UK regulators have driven buy now, pay later services to redraft terms that risked harming consumers as concerns mount over the rapidly growing payment method.
/jlne.ws/36eDFdZ
UK regulators warn banks on use of AI in loan applications; High street lenders must ensure machine learning does not worsen discrimination against minorities
Laura Noonan - FT
UK financial regulators have warned banks looking to use artificial intelligence to approve loan applications that they can only deploy the technology if they can prove it will not worsen discrimination against minorities, who already struggle to borrow.
/jlne.ws/3GPnh07
ASIC update: Compensation for financial advice related misconduct as at 31 December 2021
ASIC
Six of Australia's largest banking and financial services institutions have paid or offered a total of $3.15billion in compensation, as at 31 December 2021, to customers who suffered loss or detriment because of fees for no service misconduct or non-compliant advice. This includes almost $1.3bn paid or offered by the institutions between 1 July to 31 December 2021 (refer 21-203MR).
/jlne.ws/3sBb0Y5
Kelly L. Gibson, Director of the Philadelphia Regional Office, to Leave the SEC; Scott Thompson and Joy Thompson named Office Acting Co-Heads
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Kelly L. Gibson, Director of the Philadelphia Regional Office, will leave the agency on Feb. 11 after 14 years of service. Joy Thompson and Scott Thompson will replace her as Acting Co-Directors.
/jlne.ws/3BkLx9c
SEC Settles Charges Against Silicon Valley Insider Trading Ring
SEC
On February 7, 2022, a federal district court judge entered final consent judgments against Nathaniel Brown and Benjamin Wylam, which concluded the Securities and Exchange Commission's case against a Silicon Valley insider trading ring whose members generated nearly $1.7 million in illegal profits and losses avoided by trading on the confidential earnings information of two local technology companies.
/jlne.ws/3rL8cbE
SEC Obtains Summary Judgment Against California Investment Adviser Charged with Stealing from Advisory Clients
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that on February 8, 2022, Chief Judge Dana M. Sabraw of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California granted the SEC's motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability against California-based investment adviser Mark J. Boucher and his company Strategic Wealth Advisor Group Services Inc. ("SWAG"). According to the SEC's complaint, Boucher and SWAG defrauded advisory clients by misappropriating more than $2.2 million from advisory accounts.
/jlne.ws/3LIDh7Q
SEC Obtains Final Judgment Against Seyed Taher Kameli for Defrauding Eb-5 Investors
SEC
On January 24, 2022, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois entered a final judgment against Seyed Taher Kameli, a Chicago-based immigration attorney, for defrauding investors participating in the EB-5 immigrant investor program.
/jlne.ws/3oO5O1J
Xpress Money Services Limited enters special administration
UK FCA
On 11 February 2022, a special administration order was made by the Court in relation to Xpress Money Services Limited (Xpress) under the Payment and Electronic Money Institution Insolvency Regulations 2021. David Hudson and Philip Reynolds of FRP Advisory have been appointed as joint special administrators. Special administration is intended to facilitate the return of customer funds as soon as possible.
/jlne.ws/3LApbFx
Bank of England, FCA, PRA and PSR conduct 2021 review of Memorandum of Understanding for payment systems in the UK
UK FCA
The Bank of England (BoE), the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) have a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that sets out the high-level framework the Authorities use to cooperate with one another, in relation to payment systems in the UK. The Financial Services (Banking Reform Act) 2013 requires the Authorities to review this MoU annually. During 2021, the Authorities carried out their sixth such review.
/jlne.ws/34K0qWy
FCA secures contract changes for buy-now-pay-later customers
UK FCA
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) secures changes to potentially unfair and unclear terms in the contracts of Clearpay, Klarna, Laybuy and Openpay. The FCA was concerned there was a potential risk of harm to consumers as a result of the way some of the firm's terms were drafted.
/jlne.ws/34AsBHI
FCA drives changes to Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) firms' contract terms
UK FCA
This statement summarises the changes made by four BNPL firms to their contract terms and contains guidance for firms in this sector more generally.
/jlne.ws/362w95G
Securities Commission Malaysia Charges Unlicensed Futures Trader For Defrauding Investors
MondoVisione
The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) today charged Mohd Azhidi bin Laili (Azhidi) for breaching various provisions under securities laws for engaging in unlicensed activities and deceiving nine investors of approximately RM1.45 million of their monies between May 2013 and March 2014.
/jlne.ws/3rNg4JJ
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | Treasury Signals Crypto Miners Won't Face IRS Reporting Rule
Allyson Versprille - Bloomberg
Clarity on broker definition seen as crypto industry victory; Treasury intends to issue proposed regulations in the future
The U.S. Treasury Department indicated that it plans to spare crypto miners and stakers from rules that would require digital-asset brokers to turn over information on their clients' transactions to the IRS. The decision, which was included in a letter sent to a group of senators Friday, is a big initial win for the industry in a battle that's been brewing since last year when the reporting requirements were enacted as part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
/jlne.ws/3HNtD1g
Will this truly, finally be 'the year of the stockpicker'? Fund inflows suggest optimism that active fund managers will perform better in 2022
Robin Wigglesworth - FT
As surely as new year resolutions fall by the wayside, January brings declarations that the coming era will be a good one for stockpickers. Will they prove true in 2022? Morgan Stanley beat the rush to declare in November that 2022 would be "the year of the stockpicker". The ferocious economic and financial cross-currents would make it an unusually fertile environment for active equity fund managers, the bank's strategist Michael Wilson argued.
/jlne.ws/3sCq081
Chicken producers warn about fast-spreading bird flu spreading across US
Reuters
US poultry producers are tightening safety measures for their flocks as disease experts warn that wild birds are likely spreading a highly lethal form of avian flu across the country. Indiana on Wednesday reported highly pathogenic bird flu on a commercial turkey farm, leading China, South Korea and Mexico to ban poultry imports from the state. The outbreak put the US industry on edge at a time that labor shortages are fueling food inflation.
/jlne.ws/3GSoK5I
AQR Capital Management fixed income exit sees head of trading depart; Following the closure of its fixed income funds, AQR's head of fixed income trading has left the hedge fund after five years, The TRADE can reveal.
Annabel Smith - The Trade
Head of fixed income trading at hedge fund, AQR Capital Management, Nicolas Steinbach, has stepped down after five years as the institution shutters its long-only fixed income division, The TRADE can reveal. Originally reported by the Financial Times in November, sources familiar with the matter confirmed that AQR would be shuttering its long-only fixed income arm altogether and reorganising its bond investing operations.
/jlne.ws/3Jloaz0
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | German Tabloid Scandal Is an ESG Stress Test for Private Equity; Axel Springer is under fresh pressure to show it properly handled employee complaints. Did co-owner KKR use its influence to good effect?
By Chris Hughes - Bloomberg
Private equity firms claim to improve the operating performance of their portfolio companies. But what about non-financial credentials? Last year's governance crisis at German publisher Axel Springer SE was a stress test for buyout firm KKR & Co., its single biggest shareholder. Now fresh questions have emerged over the handling of the situation. If Axel Springer's ESG scorecard suffers once more, KKR's does too.
/jlne.ws/3oMeDcm
COP27 Host Says Priority to Help Africa During Energy Transition
Mirette Magdy and Salma El Wardany - Bloomberg
Egyptian president says climate summit needs fair decrees; African nations shouldn't miss benefits of oil and gas
Helping African nations during the clean energy transition should be a priority of COP27 climate talks in Egypt later this year, according to the host country's president. The continent shouldn't miss out on the financial benefits of its oil and gas reserves, and the November summit in Sharm El-Sheikh needs to reach balanced, fair and objective resolutions to support African countries, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said. He added that the energy sector has provided decades of wealth for rich nations.
/jlne.ws/3sDcnVZ
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | Ex-Cantor Trader Testifies Boss Approved Pay Deal by 'Snapping' at Him
Chris Dolmetsch - Bloomberg
Former top Cantor Fitzgerald LP equities trader Adam Mattessich said his boss approved a deal for him to split commissions with other traders via personal check by kicking him out of his office.
/jlne.ws/3BiAQE4
Surge in underperforming funds on 'Spot the Dog' list; End-of year 2021 market downturn hits stock pickers
Joshua Oliver - FT
The amount of UK savers' cash languishing in underperforming funds has jumped to more than £45bn, according to a report by Bestinvest, which warns that more turbulent markets will increase the pressure on active managers to prove their worth. The surge in stock markets following the Covid crash saw a steady drop in the number of "dog" funds that underperformed the broader market sector in the investment provider's twice-yearly scorecard.
/jlne.ws/3GJran9
Director of Administrator for Collapsed Woodford Fund Resigns
Kit Rees - Bloomberg
Link Fund Solutions Director Christopher Addenbrooke resigns; Link is winding down Neil Woodford's shuttered flagship fund
The director of Link Fund Solutions Ltd., the administrator of Neil Woodford's collapsed flagship fund, has resigned, according to a filing with the U.K. Companies House.
/jlne.ws/3JnZq9r
StoneX joins platinum and palladium benchmark auctions
Peter Hobson - Reuters
Brokerage StoneX Group Inc SNEX.O said on Thursday it has become a participant in auctions run twice a day in London that set global benchmark prices for platinum and palladium.
/jlne.ws/3oKkq26
Goldman's Most Notorious Banker Turns Star Witness in 1MDB Trial
Patricia Hurtado - Bloomberg
Almost four years after pleading guilty for his role in the 1MDB scandal, Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s former Southeast Asia chairman, Tim Leissner, is about to speak publicly for the first time. Leissner is expected to be the star witness in the U.S. government's case against his former subordinate Roger Ng, the only Goldman banker to go on trial for the multibillion-dollar bribery scheme. Opening statements are scheduled to begin Monday in Brooklyn. Each man faces the possibility of decades in prison for their work together.
/jlne.ws/34UaU5I
Corruption trial opens for ex-Goldman banker in 1MDB scandal
Associated Press
A federal jury in Brooklyn will hear opening statements Monday in the corruption trial of a former Goldman Sachs executive charged in the multibillion-dollar ransacking of a Malaysian state investment fund. Roger Ng's own lawyers describe the looting of $4.5 billion from the 1MDB state investment fund as "perhaps the single largest heist in the history of the world." But they contend U.S. prosecutors scapegoated the former banker for Goldman's "corporate-wide" failures that enabled the colossal fraud.
/jlne.ws/3oLkQ8o
Opening statements to kick off in ex-Goldman banker's 1MDB corruption trial
Luc Cohen - Reuters
Opening statements are expected to take place on Monday in the U.S. corruption trial of a former Goldman Sachs banker charged with helping to launder hundreds of millions of dollars looted from Malaysia's 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.
/jlne.ws/3oMq83P
BCG's Christoph Schweizer calls for 'climate activists' to join consultancy; Chief wants company to win more climate-related work as competition in sector increases
Michael O'Dwyer - FT
The new head of Boston Consulting Group has said he wants to hire climate activists to work for the consultancy as it pushes to win fees by advising companies on their plans to reach net zero emissions.
/jlne.ws/3uKllnb
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | U.S. Is Exporting Every Molecule of LNG Possible
Sergio Chapa - Bloomberg
Tankers are docked at all seven U.S. LNG export terminals; Loadings taking place amid high gas prices, tensions in Europe
Tankers were docked or loading at all seven U.S. liquefied natural gas export terminals for the first time Saturday, marking a small piece of industry history and setting up record flows to the plants amid high prices and tensions in Europe.
/jlne.ws/3gHwOvG
Could Aluminum Stockpiles Disappear by 2024? Trafigura Thinks So
Mark Burton, Jack Farchy, and Archie Hunter - Bloomberg
Booming demand to drive inventories towards zero, trader says; Aluminum prices are closing in on a record amid supply curbs
Trading giant Trafigura Group has a stark warning for aluminum buyers: deep shortages of one of the most widely used metals mean the world will run out of stockpiles by early 2024. Demand for aluminum -- used in everything from food packaging to cars to planes -- has surged as the global economy recovers from the pandemic, while an energy crisis in Europe and China has crimped supply. That's put prices on the brink of a record high, and the prospect of even more gains will add to the headache of red-hot inflation facing consumers and central banks.
/jlne.ws/3LuHoUD
Australia's Crown Resorts Agrees to $6.3 Billion Blackstone Takeover; Agreement follows a roughly yearlong effort by the U.S. private-equity giant to acquire the company
Mike Cherney - WSJ
Crown Resorts Ltd. CWN 2.02% , one of Australia's biggest casino operators, said Monday that it agreed to a $6.3 billion takeover by Blackstone Inc., BX -8.15% following a roughly yearlong effort by the U.S. private-equity giant to acquire the company. Blackstone will pay 13.10 Australian dollars (US$9.35) a share in cash for Crown, which runs casinos in Melbourne and Perth and is preparing to open a new casino on the waterfront in Sydney. Shareholders are expected to vote on the Blackstone deal in the second quarter of this year. Regulators will also need to approve the deal.
/jlne.ws/36hu3zf
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| Miscellaneous | | Stories that don't quite fit under the other sections | In Sports, Europeans are Capitalists and Americans Socialists
Ben Holland - Bloomberg
If the Cincinnati Bengals upset the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, they'll become the 14th different team to win the Super Bowl this century. That number would trigger envy among soccer fans in Europe, where the top leagues are increasingly dominated by a handful of the richest clubs -- or in some countries just one or two. Germany's Bayern Munich has won nine straight championships and is well on the way to winning a 10th this season.
/jlne.ws/3BjikeP
Just 3% of White Collar Workers Want a Full Office Return
William Shaw - Bloomberg
Most want to keep flexible practices after Covid disruption; Survey finds enthusiasm across age groups for remote work
Just 3% of white collar workers want to return to the office five days a week, according to a poll by management consultancy Advanced Workplace Associates, which warned employees will quit if bosses force them back full-time. A full 86% of employees want to work from home at least two days a week, the consultancy said after surveying nearly 10,000 people around the world across areas including finance, technology and energy. All age groups felt the same way, they added. Workers reported a preference for commuting into cities on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, raising the prospect of empty offices for the rest of the week.
/jlne.ws/3oJcqyj
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Disclaimer: All John Lothian Newsletters, JohnLothianNews.com, MarketsWiki.com and MarketsReformWiki.com are products of John Lothian News, a division of John J. Lothian & Company, Inc. The opinions expressed in all John J. Lothian & Company, Inc. publications are strictly those of their respective editors. They are intended solely for informative purposes and are not to be construed, under any circumstances, by implication or otherwise, as an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy or trade in any commodities or securities herein named. Information is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but is in no way guaranteed. No guarantee of any kind is implied or possible where projections of future conditions are attempted. Security futures are not suitable for all customers. Futures and options trading involve risk. Past results are no indication of future performance. Nothing on any John J. Lothian & Company site should be considered an endorsement by any sponsor of any website or newsletter content.
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