Articles by Ben St. Clair
Basis swaps surge amid US repo concerns
Fed funds-versus-SOFR swap volumes nearly quadruple as declining Fed reserves impact funding rates
Boeing’s descent to junk doesn’t scare investors
Analysts and managers say market can absorb any selling pressure from potential downgrade
CDS market revamp aims to fix the (de)faults
Proposed makeover for determinations committees tackles concerns over conflicts of interest
Avon CDS holders win payout despite narrow debt auction
With swap volumes outweighing eligible deliverable debt, holders feared contracts could be worthless
Barclays disputes CDS committee decision ahead of auction
Representing the bank, law firm Milbank argues the committee’s approach risks constraining the market and goes against expectations
Bitcoin ETFs drive demand for borrowing in crypto markets
Mismatch between cash and crypto settlement cycles creates pre-funding challenge
Treasury futures super-user switches to swaps
Capital Group’s Anbax fund slashes UST futures holdings in move to alternative rates derivatives
Derivatives trading halved amid CrowdStrike tech outage
With broker screens offline, G3 rates derivatives volumes plunged versus a normal Friday
Franklin Templeton steps back into FX options
Former biggest user of the instrument among US mutual funds returns with $7.6bn of USD/JPY strategies
Data reveals hidden clockwork of FX forwards market
More than 70% of Vanguard’s volumes and nearly half of Pimco’s regularly occur on just four calendar days
Banks look to offload ‘orphan’ hedge risk
Bespoke CDSs shift private credit borrowers’ derivatives default exposures back to the buy side
New CDS index delayed by regulatory capital concerns
Dealer worries about impact of self-referencing trades derail CDX Financials launch at last minute
New CDS index aims to broaden hedging of US bank exposure
CDX Financials will include inactive or untraded single names referencing smaller institutions
Cuts and points – how the Dealer Rankings work
Dealer Rankings 2024: We have a simple way to compare dealers. Sort of simple, anyway
Allianz Life drops single-name CDS positions in Q4
Counterparty Radar: US life insurance industry volumes sink to lowest level in two years
Sustainable bond markets miss an options trick
A derivatives mindset could boost lagging sustainability-linked market, argues climate think-tank
Market for ‘orphan’ hedges leaves some borrowers stranded
Companies with private credit loans face punitive costs from banks for often imperfect hedges
Green knights? Banks step into struggling carbon credit markets
Clearer global standards and a new exchange may attract dealer entry, but supply and demand challenges remain
How banks are adapting to all-powerful pod funds
Growth of multi-manager funds such as Citadel, Millennium and Balyasny has forced dealers to switch tactics in attempt to preserve profits
Traders eye negative CDS-bond basis
Changed market dynamic can be profitable for those firms able to capture it
Hedge funds push for transparency in credit determinations
Proposals include more disclosure around meetings and detailed rulings of credit events
Voluntary carbon markets need to be ‘cut a bit of slack’
Catherine McGuinness says excessive focus on greenwashing in fledgling market could undermine its development
Judge hits pause on CDS auction-rigging lawsuit
Proceedings now wait for New York court ruling on a separate 2015 settlement’s applicability
Term SOFR derivatives creep into US fund holdings
Global Atlantic shows sizeable swaps position against the new benchmark as other managers ease into trading