Issue 958 of Exchange Invest corresponds to another version of the Cayenne (who knew tractors with leather interior could require such frequent updating?). Apparently Porsche design have recently unveiled a laptop which costs 2,500 dollars, is super slim with a sandblasted exterior and has a detachable screen to run as a tablet… It is powered by Microsoft Windows 7.
Well, I suppose if Porsche could make a van engine work in the 924/944 series they can make the world’s most awful computer OS perform better than its asthmatic abilities in ‘lesser’ computers?
In Today’s Exchange Invest
ICE may be delaying London Gold launch? EU at once seeks more (maybe better) ESMA regulation ahead of Brexit while trying to stop a race to the bottom amongst some national regulators for morsels of relocating London business. Euronext repaying debt, ASX back to the same old tired monopoly playbook. TASE to become a proper for profit entity.
In BigWorld
Far from the madding crowd of major league democracies, British-born DJ Mark Dezzani is in the running to become Prince of Seborga, a village in Northern Italy near where I once lived. (The root of the claims to independence lie in sloppy drafting of treaties concerning the chattels and other inventory of the House of Savoy). Seborga may appear a joke on the world stage but it’s move towards being an independent, democratic Principality has resulted in considerable trade and tourism which is the envy of villages in the rest of the region…
Public Markets
Japan Exchange Group: Notice Of Revision To Earnings Forecast And Dividend Forecast
MondoVisione
Euronext Announces an Early Debt Repayment
BusinessWire
On 23 March 2017 Euronext NV will make an early repayment of its €70 million debt. This final voluntary repayment will complete the reimbursement of the €250 million term loan granted by a banking syndicate in May 2014.
The undrawn Revolving Credit Facility of €390 million remains in place
PLY: Deleveraging by Euronext which clearly provides optionality.
ASX Chief Says Post-Trade Equities Competition Could Lift Costs
The Australian Financial Review
PLY: For all those who thought ASX CEO Dominic Stevens was going to be a breath of fresh air, an open competitive figure desiring the best market for Australian at the expense of ASX’s throttling monopoly, here’s the proof of the plus ca change inherent to the ASX. Let the bad old times roll… Competition is bad, SETL or another settlement system will mean more expense.
All the same arguments used by flaccid Ozzie leviathans in the past are being dragged up as the ASX CEO reverts to protectionist type (qv the QANTAS playbook which restricted landing slots for Asian airlines all those years ago which may have helped the national airline but precluded the development of tourism from reaching its potential).
Presumably the next step will be anti-SETL jingoism as the Southern Cross is waved by ASX in an effort to suggest it’s in the national interest to have a single, expensive monopoly solution operating from the People’s Republic of New South Wales.
Brexit To Shape Rethink Of EU Financial Supervision
Reuters
PLY: ”Stronger regulator mentioned in EU paper. If that means ESMA actually getting the decent budget it needs to do its job with less duress, that is a good thing. If it means more regulation in a time of Trumpian deregulation well it may at least hasten a denouement in perma-stagnant Europe.
Deutsche Börse To Launch Sustainable Finance Initiative – Launch Conference In Frankfurt On 23 May 2017
MondoVisione
PLY: The irony of the utterly short termist, monopolistic, investment banker management of DB1 launching a sustainable finance initiative will not be lost on parishioners.
Frenchman Who Tried To Sell London Stock Exchange To The Germans Pocketed £5.7M Last Year
This is Money
LSE Group Plc Annual Report And Accounts, Notice Of Annual General Meeting 2017 And Related Documents
MondoVisione
Scots Chairman Of Stock Exchange Says EU Needs Successful London
Herald Scotland
THE Scot who chairs the LSE , Donald Brydon, has played down fears about the impact of Brexit on the City saying the European …
London’s Trading Infrastructure Retains Edge Despite Brexit
Financial Times
PLY: The trope of the bitter remainer faction is to always headline “Despite Brexit” in an effort to dissipate good news at all times (qv the “Blame Trump” headlines when the stockmarket wobbles – presumably a more politically correct role model was responsible for the upswing since last November?). Whether you regard it as Newtonian inertia (as Jeff Sprecher noted in that haven of Newtonian inertia Boca Raton) or a good example of a network effect that simply has no equal in continental Europe, the outlook is that London stays mega large. Albeit the trend in financial centres is one where the lead hubs take a progressively lower share of a growing pie as more niche centres take business but that is the megatrend nothing to do with Brexit. Besides, on a simple basis there simply aren’t sufficient school places in Par-Fra-Dub-Mal et al to see a wholesale market shift of operations.
EU Plans To Slow Scramble To Win Financial Firms From UK
Reuters
PLY: Meanwhile the competitive indignity of a possible regulatory race to the bottom has led the EU to step in…
Exclusive: Schwab’s Hiring Plans A Clue That It May Seek To Offer Commercial Loans
San Francisco Business Times
A company’s job postings can signal new territories, markets and business lines that it’s thinking of offering according to a recent Charles Schwab job posting.
V4 Markets Appears On FXCM /Global Brokerage List Of Subsidiaries
FinanceFeeds (blog)
PLY: FXCM, er, Global Brokerage Ltd seeks to avoid the bankruptcy hangman’s noose.
Private Markets
Israel Enacts Law To Turn Tel Aviv Exchange To For-Profit Bourse
Reuters
Novox Capital Gets CYSEC Approval To Launch P2P Binary Options
Finance Magnates
PLY: A first P2P binary options trading venue in Europe?
Central Bank Seeks EOIs For New Electronic Bond Trading Platform
Daily Mirror
PLY: Sri Lanka looks to purpose built government debt platform and clearing house, replacing existing usage of Bloomberg terminals.
It’s A Small World
Calcutta Telegraph
Smarter Indians from the corporate world who have been taking advantage of Luxembourg’s advanced stock market facilities already know this.
House Accepts Proposal On Commodity Exchange Market Bill
Himalayan Times
PLY: On the departure of an Indian Ambassador, some thoughts on usage of Luxembourg SE…
Special Section: FTI, NSEL, India at the Crossroads
No news today.
Technology
Baymarkets Launches Clarity Platform For RegTech Solution Delivery – First Two Solutions Available – Clarity Limit Pre-Trade Limits & Risk Checking And Clarity Hub Multiple CCP Interface
MondoVisione
National Settlement Depository And Russian National Association Of Securities Market Participants Implement New Technological Platform For Unit Trust Market
MondoVisione
How The Tradeweb APA Will Help Firms Fulfil Their Mifid Ii Reporting Requirements
Tradeweb
Products
ICE Delays Launch Of Clearing For London Gold Benchmark: Sources
Reuters
PLY: Banks’ incapacity to prepare their systems may result in a delay of the ICE’s launch plans.
Stock Traders Gain New Bellwether for Analyzing Brexit Talks
Bloomberg
PLY: BATS in the race to establish Brexit benchmark indices. Good move by Guy Simpkin and the BATS team.
Want To Know The Outlook For Fine Wines? Ask Dr Copper
Financial Times
PLY: On the Chinese linkage to fine wine prices and other markets with which wine has moved in tandem such as oil – interesting story linked to the Liv-Ex Index.
Move Over Programmatic: The Literal ‘Nasdaq Of Advertising’ Has Arrived
City AM
PLY: Excellent article discussing the NYIAX and its proposed function clearly.
ESMA Sees Relatively Ample Liquidity In Sovereign Bond Markets
MondoVisione
Tokyo Commodity Exchange Launches Platinum Rolling Spot Futures Today
MondoVisione
Bursa Malaysia Seeks Public Feedback On Rule Framework For Islamic Securities Selling And Buying Negotiated Transaction Model
MondoVisione
GPW Extends Fee Reductions For Market Makers
MondoVisione
Career Paths
PLY: The UK FCA has added veteran NGO staffer Nick Stace as a Non-Executive Director to its board for an initial three year term starting 1 April 2017. Stace is currently Chief Executive of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and has held executive leadership positions in consumer organisations as Deputy CEO of Which? (UK) and CEO of Choice (Australia).
City Diary: Cameron Delivers The Dross And The Florida Crowd Laps It Up
This is Money
PLY: Apparently former PM Cameron at Boca said “Thank you for giving an unemployed man a hot meal” without revealing his significant trust fund… With transparency like that and a father who was a stockbroker, clearly a career in investment banking can’t be far off.
FXCM Cuts Board To Seven With Departures Of Eric Legoff And Jim Brown
LeapRate
PLY: Two non-execs depart, presumably exiting stage left somewhat disappointed that they were unaware FXCM didn’t use the trading model they claimed…
Crowdfunding
Nothing hits the spot today.
Other Stories
Banking Standards Board: Worthy Of Trust? Law, Ethics And Culture In Banking – Opening Remarks By Mark Carney, Governor Of The Bank Of England
MondoVisione
PLY: #IronyAlert. Am I alone in noting that Mark Carney is an ex-Goldman Sachs partner who vociferously intervened during the UK Brexit referendum with a vast swathe of simply inaccurate scaremongering statements as part of project fear and has never made the remotest apology for any of his erratic behaviour, while shamelessly sticking in his post as Bank of England Governor…and now is offering a comment on banking ethics?
Hong Kong’s Securities And Futures Commission Concludes Consultation On Position Limit Regime
MondoVisione
How To Achieve Financial Inclusion In Africa
The Market Mogul
Fintech – A Brave New World For The Financial Sector?
Seeking Alpha
PLY: Continuing today’s unofficial “ethical” theme in this section… Interesting if only because it is written by one Christine Lagarde, who you may recall as the convicted criminal running the IMF (clearly a frontrunner for ‘capo di tutti capi’ of all bankers). Instructive only insofar as being bland, dull and not actually answering any questions while giving blobsters a modicum of comfort. While Rome wasn’t burnt in a day, if you really believe in the powerful force of fintech innovation, you would have made this speech at least 5 years ago and preferably in the last millennium. ‘Keep up at the back’ applies to the IMF more than most it sadly seems.
Project Porsche 956 in garage still some way off completion.
The sun shines again in Malta after torrential downpours – hoorah!
Thanks for reading Exchange Invest,
Patrick
Patrick L Young
Executive Director DV Advisors