A whole new battle emerges for Jignesh Shah as a US vendor alleges FTIL has been copying its software. Mr Shah remains in jail on his latest stay, incidentally. Good results from CME, Colombia renews NASDAQ tech agreement, BGC and Marex in talks about acquiring ICAP energy desks.
Meanwhile in Bigworld, Hillary Clinton was crowned Presidential candidate last night. Demonstrating her clearly considerable credentials and experience to be Commander in Chief, there wasn’t even time to mention her extensive experience with the Clinton Foundation.
Public Markets
CME
vs Q2 2015: total revenues $906m, up 10.5%, operating income $563m, up 13.8%, net income $320m, up 20%.
PLY: Good numbers with a lot of granular growth across the board at CME.
BME
vs H1 2015: revenues Euro 168.2m (USD 186.7m), down 7.2%, net profit Euro 86m (USD 95.4m), down 6.1%.
PLY: As noted by Peter Lenardos of RBC: “BME posts a rare beat, with higher-than-anticipated revenue driving the P&L beat.”
WSE
vs H1 2015: revenues PLN 155.5m (USD 39.5m), down 6%, profit PLN 60.2m (USD 15.3m), down 8%.
PLY: The good news is, er, these results aren’t as bad as I feared given the quasi-endless internal changes at GPW which still leave the GPW apparently without a clear direction.
BGC Partners
vs Q2 2015 (GAAP): revenues $652m, down 2.6%, net income $25.4m, up 91.3%.
ITG
vs Q2 2015 (GAAP): revenues $120.6m, down 14%, net loss of $5.2m, compared to net loss of $10.2m.
PLY: Disappointing numbers as ITG continues to reposition itself.
Thomson Reuters Q2 2016 Results
MondoVisione
vs Q2 2015 (IFRS): revenues USD 2.76B, down 1%, operating profit USD 401m, up 16%.
BGC, Marex In “Talks” Over Icap Energy Desks (subscription)
FOW
Brokers BGC Partners and Marex Spectron are in advanced talks with Icap over buying two of their rival’s oil desks.
PLY: Obvious purchasers but given their existing strength, remind me, why did ICAP have to sell this in the first place?
DB1 Expects In-Depth EU Scrutiny Of LSE Merger Plan
Jonathan Gould – Reuters
“We expect that it will go in a phase II approach,” DB1 CFO Gregor Pottmeyer told analysts, referring to the more complex process regulators use when they are concerned a merger may restrict competition.
PLY: Obvious statement by Pottmeyer without going to the logical conclusion – the deal won’t pass. There are 194 days until DB1 ought to be in the antitrust turbulence zone.
Euronext Eyes “Opportunities” From LSE Merger As European Opposition Grows
William Turvill – CITY A.M.
ENX CEO Stephane Boujnah indicated that his company is monitoring the situation to see “whether some opportunities can come out” of the deal.
PLY: Boujnah mentioned the Dutch government is concerned about the Merger of Equal Desperation, adding to the governments of France, Belgium and Portugal.
QV Premium: DB1-LSE Merger Brief.
Euronext CEO Cautiously Optimistic For The Rest Of The Year
Euronext
To give a detailed update on strategic plans at full-year results in february next year – CEO.
CurveGlobal Approves Market-Makers Ahead Of Launch (subscription)
FOW
LSE-backed CurveGlobal has approved 11 market-makers to support the new interest rate futures trading venue which is set to go live on Sep 26.
Delistings & System Glitches Are Confounding SGX’s Efforts To Reform Itself
Mayuko Tani – Nikkei
HK & Singapore’s Exchange Battle Pivots On China (subscription)
Jennifer Hughes – Financial Times
What both are really focusing on, however, is a battle to become Asia’s go-to centre for cross-border dealing in as many other asset classes and market segments as they can lay claim to.
PLY: It strikes me SGX is in some dire need of better organisation – the marketplace has lost face and the market is losing faith. That’s not how it once was when Singapore was a dynamic market at the centre of the Asian trading day.
Currency Trading’s ‘Last Look’ Rules Are Changing, BOE Says
John Detrixhe – Bloomberg
Some fx platforms have changed their policies, giving priority to orders that are less susceptible to exploitation, the BOE said in a report on Thursday. It comes a year after Britain’s central bank said last look was vulnerable to abuse. London is the global center for currency trading, a $5.3 trillion market.
PLY: Change is still coming too slowly. In other news, some regulators such as Malta have been seemingly further cracking down on retail forex entities which is a welcome sign for a better market.
Dividend News
CBOE BoD declared an increased dividend of $0.25 for Q3 2016, payable on September 16, 2016, record date September 2, 2016.
BME BoD agreed to distribute a gross €0.40 dividend on September 16, its first interim dividend against 2016 earnings.
Special Section: FTI, NSEL, India at the Crossroads
PLY: MCX slightly off, FTIL down 1%.
FTIL Faces Rs3,190 Cr ($475m) Copyright Case Over Its Trading Software
Jayshree P. Upadhyay – Livemint
US-based firm Modulus Financial’s plea in Bombay high court claims similarities between its product and FTIL’s ODIN.
Technology
BVC Extends Trading Technology Contract with Nasdaq
Nasdaq
Nasdaq and Bolsa de Valores de Colombia (BVC) announced the extension of their current trading technology contract for an additional seven years.
The upgraded Nasdaq matching engine, X-stream INET Trading, further enhances the Colombian capital market by supporting new asset classes and providing more efficient MILA connectivity, which integrates the stock exchange markets of Chile, Colombia, México and Perú.
PLY: An encouraging renewal for NASDAQ.
Speed Traders Invade Sleepy Corner of England, Locals Bristle
John Detrixhe & Will Hadfield – Bloomberg
Four firms are looking to build 300-meter radio masts in Kent.
‘Rigged’ Market? Panel lists Changes To Fix Trading Problems
Jeff Cox – CNBC
A blue-ribbon panel is proposing a bevy of reforms that it hopes will restore confidence in the stock market. The Committee on Capital Markets Regulation released a laundry list Thursday of changes it believes will make the market function better.
India Is Having Its Own ‘Flash Boys’ Moment
Tina Wadhwa – Business Insider
National Exchange of India (NSE) is having its own “Flash Boys” moment.
With 40% of all stock trading volume on the exchange now coming from high frequency and algorithmic transactions, up from low single digits five years ago, rumors abound of collusion and high frequency traders gaining preferential access at the NSE.
Products
In Derivatives Trading, London is King (subscription)
Mike Bird – Wall Street Journal
The city’s dominant position in derivatives may be difficult to undo in the event of Brexit.
PLY: The Wall Street Journal is gradually catching up with EUropean issues – still much work to be done but at least they are pointed in the right direction.
Coinbase Extends Bitcoin & Ether Buying Service To Canada & Singapore
Rosemary Barnes – Finance Magnates
Indexes
Tokyo SE: Compliance With IOSCO Principles For Financial Benchmarks
MondoVisione
Career Paths
ICE Benchmark Administration (IBA) appointed Dame DeAnne Julius, a founding member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England, as a Director of IBA. The appointment is effective immediately. Dame DeAnne’s appointment has been approved by the FCA.
PLY: The ICE Benchmark Administration board is a remarkably strong one incidentally, including Michel Prada, who combines a formidable experience and nous for markets, having headed the French AMF.
Financial Calendar
29.07 – CBOE Q2 2016 Results
02.08 – SEC Equity Market Structure Advisory Committee – agenda
03.08 – ICE Q2 Results
All forthcoming exchange / investment related events are now listed in our Events page.
Other stories
CFTC
ESMA Publishes Extract On Enforcement Decisions On Financial Statements
MondoVisione
ESMA Issues Overview Of European Prospectus Activity
MondoVisione
PLY: PD remains horribly prescriptive and is part of Europe’s funding problem. Deregulation is urgently needed.
UK Parliament Treasury Committee Update: Chairman Seeks Commitment From FCA Not To Increase Costs
MondoVisione
PLY: Sensible request, UK FCA is already very expensive for smaller venues.