North America

Major derivatives exchanges have released figures showing growth over 2016 and in December, with big gains reported in some product lines.

John Maynard Keynes said we live in a world of irreducible uncertainty, while neoclassical economists assume that perfect information is available and people have rational expectations. The events of the past decade suggest that the former school of thought has more credence, though “freshwater” economists would no doubt disagree.

Royal Bank of Canada, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Deutsche Pfandbriefbank tapped the sterling covered bond market this week at cheaper levels than they could have achieved in euros and dollars.

Timothy Massad, chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, has resigned, with Republican commissioner J. Christopher Giancarlo widely expected to take up the job.

Barclays pulled in $1.5bn for a 30 year senior bond as part of a four-tranche offering worth $5bn, as five Yankee FIG borrowers powered through the first global window of 2017.

Royal Bank of Canada took advantage of deeper demand for fixed rate paper than floating in sterling covered bonds, issuing a five year trade on Wednesday. RBC has gathered more demand for its deal than Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, which issued a floating rate deal a day before.

High volumes of issuance have boosted confidence in FIG primary market conditions at the start of 2017, with bankers expecting flows to remain high until banks start going into blackout later this month.

Four covered bond issuers returned to the market on Tuesday with the first deals of 2017. Two €1.5bn 10 year transactions showed that borrowers are prioritising the tougher, longer duration deals and, while conditions permit, issuing in large size.

In 2016, blockchain went from a buzzword to a ‘must have’ in financial markets, as seemingly every bank and exchange invested in projects and proofs-of-concept. But with so many asset classes having been promised big gains, 2017 begins with a dose of realism about the limits of the technology — and the challenges it poses for regulators. Dan Alderson reports.

The upending of global financial markets in the second half of 2016, driven by shocks from the UK’s Brexit vote and US presidential election, has caused a breakdown in previously dominant cross-asset correlations and a sharp resizing of event risk in 2017. Dan Alderson reports on a wave of structured product innovation aimed at navigating this new and more volatile universe.

Cross-currency swap markets face a rough start to 2017. Traders fear that diverging central bank policy, a shift in corporate borrowing dynamics and a repatriation of US money will all upset the basis at different parts of the curve. Dan Alderson reports.

The UK’s decision to leave the European Union cast extreme uncertainty over the economy, the values and even the unity of the country. Its ramifications for domestic companies’ financing capabilities has been both more obvious and more benign, however. Max Bower reports.