IOSCO consults on recommendations to help trading venues manage extreme volatility
March 7, 2018--The Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) is seeking feedback on its proposed recommendations to assist trading venues and regulatory authorities in the implementation of mechanisms to manage extreme volatility.
Extreme volatility in securities markets can undermine IOSCO's objective of ensuring that markets are fair, efficient and transparent, weaken market integrity and reduce investor confidence. Following recent extreme volatility events, regulatory authorities and trading venues have been reviewing their approaches to managing extreme volatility; volatility control mechanisms seek to minimize market disruption triggered by events such as erroneous orders, by halting or temporarily constraining trading.
Source: IOSCO
LIMEYARD partners with the Vienna Stock Exchange to add real-time index calculation and data dissemination to its proprietary and non-proprietary index offering
March 7, 2018--NEW, INNOVATIVE INDEX PROVIDER FOUNDED BY INDUSTRY EXPERTS
LIMEYARD partners with the Vienna Stock Exchange to add real-time index calculation and data
dissemination to its proprietary and non-proprietary index offering
LIMEYARD is delighted to announce a strategic partnership with the Vienna Stock
Exchange (Wiener Börse AG) aimed at strengthening its index offering globally by providing real-time index
calculation and data dissemination.
LIMEYARD is a new, cutting-edge index provider launched in Zurich with in-depth knowledge of the market's needs. Based on a unique cloud-based infrastructure offering a fast and secure environment, the index provider designs both white-labelled and LIMEYARD-branded indices. Founded by its Managing Partner and led by a team of reputable industry experts, the index provider has offices in New York, Paris, Zurich and now Vienna.
Source: LIMEYARD
McKay Brothers Receives Minority Investment from Jane Street Group
March 6, 2018--McKay Brothers, a market leader in low latency networks, today announces a minority investment from Jane Street Group, LLC that will support the continued growth of McKay's successful private bandwidth and market data businesses.
Jane Street Group joins IMC, Tower Research Capital, Susquehanna International Group and XR Trading as minority investors in McKay. The companies' founders continue to hold the controlling majority of McKay's equity. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Source: McKay Brothers
A new way to measure growth and development: The Inclusive Development Index
March 6, 2018--Recent political developments in many countries suggest that most of their citizens lack confidence in the assumption of the standard growth model that everyone in a society benefits from GDP growth. This column proposes a multidimensional 'Inclusive Development Index', based on a dashboard of indicators in growth and development, inclusion, and intergenerational equity and sustainability.
GDP per capita growth is weakly correlated with performance in many of the new index's indicators, including those pertaining to employment, income and wealth inequality, and carbon intensity.
Global economic growth is making a stronger than expected comeback. It is likely to accelerate to as much as 4% in 2018, from 3.2% in 2016 (IMF 2018).
World Gold Council-Gold-backed ETFs lost 5.1t in February
March 6, 2018--Gold-backed ETFs collectively held 2,393.4t (US$101.4bn) at the end of February after losing 5.1t (US$146mn) during the month.
Regional fund flows
Asian-listed funds added 7.9t (US$317mn, 8.3% AUM)
European funds lost 7.3t (US$240.6mn, 57bp AUM).
North American funds lost 5.1t (US$196mn, 37bp AUM)
Funds in other regions lost 0.7t (US$28mn, 1.6% AUM)
Source: World Gold Council (WGC)
World Economic Forum Convenes New Consortium to Address Fintech Cybersecurity
March 6, 2018--The World Economic Forum today announced the creation of a new consortium to strengthen cybersecurity for financial technology companies (fintechs) and data aggregators. The consortium's founding members include global bank Citigroup, insurance company Zurich Insurance Group, fintech lender Kabbage, information technology company Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), and financial infrastructure provider The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC).
Its aim is to create a framework for the assessment of cybersecurity in financial technology.
The consortium came about after leading cybersecurity experts convened by the World Economic Forum identified the growing threat of cyber-attacks to financial services providers as a key concern for the global financial system. Their assessment and proposed solutions were published today in Innovation-Driven Cyber-Risk to Customer Data in Financial Services, a white paper.
view the Innovation-Driven Cyber-Risk to Customer Data in Financial Services white paper
Source: WEF (World Economic Forum)
Polish confirms bid for Tel Aviv stock exchange
March 6, 2018-- Poland's state-run stock exchange GPW (GPW.WA), along with state fund PFR, has submitted a non-binding offer to buy a 71.7-percent stake in Tel Aviv Stock Exchange TASE, GPW said on Tuesday.
Last week, a source close to TASE said that more than ten stock exchange operators have shown an interest in buying a controlling stake.
Source: Reuters
Cryptocurrencies Could Threaten Financial Stability, Says Head of BIS
March 6, 2018--Official from Bank for International Settlements calls on central banks to intervene to stem risks
Central banks must be prepared to intervene to stem risks from digital currencies, as Bitcoin has become a "combination of a bubble, a Ponzi scheme and an environmental disaster," central banking official Agustin Carstens said Tuesday.
The warning indicates public authorities are moving toward a crackdown on digital currencies amid concerns they could undermine the broader financial system. view more
Source: Wall Street Journal
IMF Working Papers-How Well Do Economists Forecast Recessions?
March 5, 2018--Summary:
We describe the evolution of forecasts in the run-up to recessions. The GDP forecasts cover 63 countries for the years 1992 to 2014. The main finding is that, while forecasters are generally aware that recession years will be different from other years, they miss the magnitude of the recession by a wide margin until the year is almost over.
Forecasts during non-recession years are revised slowly; in recession years, the pace of revision picks up but not sufficiently to avoid large forecast errors. Our second finding is that forecasts of the private sector and the official sector are virtually identical; thus, both are equally good at missing recessions. Strong booms are also missed, providing suggestive evidence for Nordhaus' (1987) view that behavioral factors-the reluctance to absorb either good or bad news-play a role in the evolution of forecasts.
view the IMF Working Papers-How Well Do Economists Forecast Recessions?
Source: IMF
FSB publishes Global Shadow Banking Monitoring Report 2017
March 5, 2018--The Financial Stability Board (FSB) today published the Global Shadow Banking Monitoring Report 2017. The Report presents the results of the FSB's seventh annual monitoring exercise to assess global trends and risks from shadow banking activities.
The 2017 monitoring exercise covers data up to end-2016 from 29 jurisdictions, which together represent over 80% of global GDP, including, for the first time, Luxembourg. Also for the first time, the Report assesses the involvement of non-bank financial entities in China in credit intermediation that may pose financial stability risks from shadow banking, such as maturity/liquidity mismatches and leverage.
view the FSB Global Shadow Banking Monitoring Report 2017
Source: Financial Stability Board (FSB)