E-trading platform for securities lending EquLend has agreed to pay pension funds and others part of a whopping $500 million and to revamp its governance policy to settle an antitrust class-action lawsuit which includes prime brokers Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan Chase and UBS. The plaintiffs in the case led by the Iowa Public […]
SEC’s Proposed New Custody Rule Fails Industry Litmus Test
Fund management and custodian operations and legal experts are warning the US Securities and Exchange Commission that its proposed changes to its custody rule, which requires registered investment advisers to select a qualified custodian to safeguard their assets, are far too impractical and costly. “The new proposed rule is contrary to existing business practice and […]
Industry Squeezes SEC on Sec Loan Reporting
Wall Street continues to turn up the heat against the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s proposal for transaction reporting on securities loans, citing its contradictory analysis on short position and short activity reporting as well as potential operational shortcomings. The SEC recently reopened the comment period for its proposed securities loan reporting plan to adopt […]
What’s a CUSIP Worth? Over US$1B in Class Action Win
If you think you have been fleeced by CUSIP Global Services and others for paying licensing fees for nine-digit alphanumeric identification codes for US securities you might be entitled to a chunk of at least US $1 billion in compensation if a jury decides you’re right. All you must do is be part of an […]
US SEC Loan Reporting: Ops Cost of Transparency
The operational and legal challenges of complying with the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s potential requirement to report information on securities loan transactions to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority could outweigh the benefits of transparency to investors, say operations and legal experts. Instead of offering any feedback to the SEC’s proposal, some industry players asked […]
Autism Center of Alleged Crypto Inventor Wright’s Fraud Trial
A brilliant autistic cryptocurrency developer or a brilliant con artist? That’s what a federal jury in Miami has to decide about Australian-born Craig Wright, who alleges he is Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of the most popular cryptocurrency Bitcoin and underlying blockchain technology. Ira Kleiman, the brother of the late Dave Kleiman, sued Wright in 2018 […]
Bloomberg’s FIGIs Win Nod From US Standards Body: Now What?
Bloomberg finally got its wish for FIGIs– acceptance of its securities ID codes as a standard– but whether that equates to popularity for trade and post-trade operations managers remains to be seen. Trade, middle, and back-office operations, and compliance managers at buy and sell-side firms can now be certain that Bloomberg’s financial instrument global identifiers […]
Archegos Debacle Prompts Holistic Counterparty Risk Management
The recent implosion of family office Archegos Capital Management should renew interest in counterparty risk management and the need for a holistic program, say some broker-dealer risk management experts. By JP Morgan’s estimates the fallout may have cost some prominent prime brokers, such as combined as much as US$10 billion in trading losses. Archegos’ betting […]
New FX Benchmark Aims to Save Buy-Side Big Bucks
Are we getting the best foreign exchange conversion rate? Pension plans and other asset owners asking their fund managers that question might hear a resounding yes, but that’s not always the case as highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Not all benchmarks are created equal, according to London-based Raidne, which claims it has come up with a […]
ADRs: Will Blockchain Create a Better Mousetrap?
Unsponsored American Depositary Receipts could be a lot less expensive and more efficient for investors to own and to receive dividends and other corporate action distributions thanks to a new permission-based blockchain platform designed by RISE Financial Technologies, according to the Boston and London-based blockchain technology firm. RISE Financial predicts its new blockchain-based infrastructure, set to […]