Derivs - People and Markets

The MiFID II deadline stands. Firms who don't prepare to meet it won’t receive any grace or favour, the FCA has said. But the tough deadline of January 3, and continued lack of regulatory clarity, means firms that show they've done all they can should escape the worst effects.

European authorities have announced the start of work to identify a risk-free overnight rate, to be provided by the European Central Bank by 2020.

Societe Generale has hired Francisco Sottomayor as its head of global markets for Spain and Portugal.

Leverj, a planned decentralised platform for cryptocurrency derivative trading, will not only offer the ability to trade cryptocurrency leveraged products but also to use the blockchain to trade other index and stock futures.

An International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) determinations committee this week 'cleverly' dismissed the controversial question of whether Noble Group defaulted on its debt in June, but the move has prompted questions about reform of the decision-making process.

Distributed ledger technology “is on the verge of creating a sea change in contract design, reporting and settlement”, Brian Quintenz, a member of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, said this week, as he was named sponsor of its Technology Advisory Committee (TAC).

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) released new recommendations on how to manage the recovery and resolution of central counterparties (CCPs) on Monday. The organisation also encouraged regulators to not distract themselves with 'politically driven topics', citing the debate on whether certain clearing houses should be relocated to European Union member states after Brexit.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman Christopher Giancarlo's warning to Europe against taking “unilateral” action in changing rules tied to G-20 commitments made in 2009 is right. While there are concerns about the future regulatory relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union, derivatives clearing is a global issue.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) has set up a subsidiary in Amsterdam, giving it an option for its securities business once the UK leaves the EU.

Tobam has hired Frédéric Jamet as head of trading and co-head of research. Mr Jamet will oversee equities, fixed income, forex and assets. He will be based in Paris but will manage teams on the continent and in Dublin.

Commodity Futures and Trading Commission (CFTC) chairman Christopher Giancarlo on Tuesday warned Europe against "unilateral change" of regulatory arrangements on the supervision of foreign central counterparties (CCPs), railing against "piecemeal and contradictory rulemaking".

Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Christopher Giancarlo on Monday reemphasised his commitment to global regulators' mutual recognition of foreign clearing house (CCP) supervisory regimes, without forcing “identical implementation”.