Derivs - Regulation

The UK financial regulator has recognised Intercontinental Exchange’s data and analytics unit as a third-country benchmark administrator, more than two years ahead of schedule.

The European Commission is set to announce on Wednesday whether it will extend the “equivalence” status granted to Swiss stock exchange SIX, which ends at the end of the month. The exercise is mostly political, as Brussels is using it to pressure the Swiss government into signing a general diplomatic agreement.

Christopher Giancarlo, chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, made his final speech at a Futures Industry Association conference this week, with a last attempt to stake out his vision on cross-border clearing supervision.

Comco, the Swiss competition commission, has imposed fines of Sfr90m ($89.9m) and reached amicable settlements in relation to alleged FX rigging by traders from major banks.

The US Senate has approved the nomination of Dr. Heath Tarbert as chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Representatives of the European Union’s 28 member states have resumed talks on a clearing house (CCP) resolution, with a view to reach an agreement by the end of the year.

In the event the UK leaves the European Union without agreeing to the negotiated exit deal, EU banks and investment firms will be able to come to the UK to trade UK shares, the European Securities and Market Authority (ESMA) has said, reversing on a previous statement. But the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is not satisfied with the ESMA’s proposed trading obligations under No Deal Brexit.

The EU has fined five big banks about €1.1bn in total after it found that some of their currency traders were involved in a foreign exchange cartel.

US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) commissioner Dan Berkovitz has thrown his weight behind new rules covering speculative position limits.

Uncertainty around how MiFID II’s trading obligation will function after Brexit is leading UK and European derivatives trading houses to consider executing trades in other jurisdictions.

The UK Treasury is now seeking applications for the next governor of the Bank of England. Mark Carney will step down in less than a year's time.

A senior European Commission official has defended the EU's record on regulation since the financial crisis, amid complaints that global derivatives markets have become fragmented.