Markit, the U.K. data provider, and the International Swaps & Derivatives Association (ISDA), an industry trade group, have offered concessions in an effort to settle a European Union antitrust investigation into possible collusion in the credit default swaps (CDS) market, according to the European Commission. The Commission is seeking feedback from interested parties on the… Read More >>
All Eyes on the Barclays Libor Trial
The outcome of the current Libor trial of five former Barclays traders in London is too difficult to forecast but lawyers expect that a guilty verdict could unleash a wave of other criminal and civil cases as well as lend support to the beleaguered Securities Fraud Office (SFO). “This case has generated a great deal… Read More >>
New Markit Service Targets the Demands of CRS
Markit is launching a due diligence solution intended to help financial services firms meet a forthcoming standard for the automated exchange of financial account information, particularly as it relates to know your customer (KYC) requirements. Created with help from officials at Barclays and Brown Brothers Harriman (BBH), the new offering is Markit│CTI Tax Solutions for… Read More >>
Barclays Bids Farewell to its IB CEO and Welcomes New COO
Barclays Also Welcomes a New Chief Operating Officer Tom King, the CEO of the Investment Bank at Barclays, will retire on March 4, 2016, after overseeing “a period of extraordinary change,” Barclays officials announced late last week. “After nearly 25 years in my career, and having now seen the Investment Bank through a period of… Read More >>
Barclays to Transfer Legacy Derivatives to JPMorgan
Barclays Bank (Barclays) has signed an agreement with JPMorgan to divest its legacy derivatives portfolio as part of its non-core rundown strategy — a possible sign that other banks may start to move assets around in order to adjust to the increasingly burdensome regulatory demands for capital requirements. Barclays officials say that “acting through Barclays… Read More >>
Calpers CEO to Retire at the End of June
Calpers CEO to Retire by mid-2016 CEO for the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (Calpers) Anne Stausboll says she will retire as head of the nation’s largest public pension fund on June 30, 2016, at the end of the fund’s current fiscal year. Stausboll has been CEO since January 2009, and she took on the… Read More >>
Barclays to Lay Off 1,000 in Investment Banking
Barclays will be shrinking its investment banking staff in Asia and elsewhere by 1,000 or so as a result of the bank’s decision to exit markets that are proving to be a challenge for global financial services firms. Overall, the investment bank of Barclays “will continue to focus on its two home markets in the… Read More >>
Traders in Euribor Trials Could Face Jail Time
Although it is too early predict the fate of the six traders charged by the U.K.’s Securities Fraud Office (SFO) for allegedly manipulating Euribor, the unexpectedly long jail sentence of Tom Hayes in a similar case could set a precedent if they are found guilty. Hayes is a former UBS and Citigroup derivatives trader who… Read More >>
Ops Gets on the Blockchain Revolution Bus
Bitcoin, a so-called crypto-currency, may fade before anyone really understands what it was or how it could actually have prevailed in financial services. However, out of Bitcoin’s ashes has risen the humbly named Blockchain technology. The distributed ledger technology that has been propping up Bitcoin has come to the attention of major industry players. This… Read More >>
Can Banks Really Create a Culture of Compliance?
The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) recent decision to fine Barclays a record £72 million ($108.3 million) for the alleged poor handling of financial crime risks will likely serve to reinforce the public perception of greedy bankers. But have financial institutions made any progress in developing a more positive culture in the new regulatory era of… Read More >>
