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The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (Commission) Division of Market Oversight and Division of Clearing and Risk has issued a letter providing the divisions’ view that the use of a “firm or forced trades” process by a derivatives clearing organisation (DCO) to determine the price of certain swaps for which public market prices are not available will not by itself require a DCO to register as a swap execution facility.
The interpretation also states that a swap generated as a result of such a process would not be subject to the clearing and trade execution requirements of the Commodity Exchange
While CFTC Commissioners and staff have in the past asserted that the CFTC has jurisdiction over bitcoin derivatives in speeches and testimony, for the first time the Commission has issued a definitive finding that bitcoin derivative exchanges must register as a SEF or designated contract market.
The CFTC will now uphold the laws and regulations of the Commodity Exchange Act for all derivative bitcoin trading venues
“This begins a new chapter in the evolution of the bitcoin market,” says Palu L Choue, CEO LedgerX. “This demonstrates that bitcoin is a new commodity subject to CFTC jurisdiction and that
Fund governance firm DMS Offshore Investment Services (DMS) has been recognised as "Best Offshore Regulatory Advisory Firm" in the 2015 Hedgeweek USA Awards.
DMS was also honoured with this award in 2014, and with Hedgeweek's Global Award for the quality of its regulatory advisory services in 2014 and 2015.
Operating in seven jurisdictions, DMS is known for its pioneering role in institutional fund governance services and for the uncompromising performance of its directors who serve on the boards of hedge funds and a variety of related structures.
"DMS has a successful tradition of supporting the fund industry through
The Right Honourable William Hague (pictured) has joined the Boards of Intercontinental Exchange and ICE Futures Europe. Hague will assume the role of Chairman of ICE Futures Europe in January 2016, succeeding Sir Bob Reid who is retiring from that role after 16 years of service. Sir Bob Reid continues as the Chairman of ICE Clear Europe through 2015.
Hague served as a Member of the UK Parliament from 1989 to 2015. He entered the UK Cabinet in 1995 and led the Conservative Party from 1997 to 2001. From 2010 to 2014 he served as First Secretary of State and
The CFTC has settled charges against Bitcoin options platform operator Coinflip and its chief executive officer Francisco Riordan for conducting commodity options transactions without complying with the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC Regulations.
Specifically, the charges relate to operating a facility for the trading or processing of commodity options without complying with the CEA or CFTC Regulations otherwise applicable to swaps or conducting the activity pursuant to the CFTC’s exemption for trade options. Coinflip is based in San Francisco, California, and Riordan resides in San Francisco.
The Order finds that, from in or about March 2014 to at least August
In an extract from the recently released Preqin Investor Outlook: Alternative Assets H2 2015, Preqin explores institutional investors’ plans for their infrastructure portfolios, including investment in alternative structures, and looks at the alignment of interests between investors and fund managers.
The infrastructure fund market is relatively smaller than those of other alternative asset classes; just over a third of institutional investors allocate part of their assets under management (AUM) to infrastructure, while over half invest in private equity, hedge funds and real estate. While there are some very experienced investors that have been active for some time, there are
Indian venture capital fundraising, deals and exits all hit record levels in 2014 and Preqin’s latest statistics show that 2015 is well on track to exceed the amounts seen last year. The steep upward curve in activity is an indication of the country’s rapidly developing venture capital industry and thriving start-up environment.
Read the full factsheet here, containing charts, league tables and analysis of the venture capital industry in India.
Eurex Exchange is to offer a new interest rate future based on the long-term bonds issued by the Spanish government, starting 26 October 2015.
The new Euro-Bono-Futures contract represents an important addition to the existing range of efficient and cost-effective hedging instruments on the European government bond market, complementing Eurex’s already listed long-term interest rate derivatives products such as Bund-, BTP- and OAT-Futures.
“With the introduction of this contract, we are responding to the significant interest from our participants in more customised hedging solutions and in new spread trading opportunities,” says Eurex Executive Board member, Mehtap Dinc.
Eurex
The UK’s only independent depositary firm, INDOS Financial, has reached USD5 billion in assets under depositary in its first 15 months of existence.
Bill Prew, pictured, chief executive officer of INDOS Financial says that business is coming, not just from its traditional hedge fund audience but also from the private equity and real estate sector, with three more funds about to come on board.
October will see the arrival of a dedicated and experienced manager for those sectors. “There is a growing acknowledgement of the benefits of an independent depositary in the private equity and real estate space” Prew
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) has launched a new industry data project, aimed at developing an open-source standard derivatives product identification system that can be applied across all derivatives facilities.
That would include trading venues, clearing houses, repositories and other infrastructures.
ISDA is overseeing the symbology project, which involves a consortium of buy- and sell-side market participants, vendors, platforms and trade associations. London-based capital markets technology consultancy Etrading Software is acting as project manager
The initiative comes in response to a variety of regulatory changes, including the European Union’s revised Markets in Financial Instruments Directive/Regulation (MIFID
