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CFTC-SEC Release Joint Study on the Feasibility of Mandating Algorithmic Descriptions for Derivatives
April 8, 2011-- Today, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission (Commissions) have delivered to Congress a joint staff study on “the feasibility of requiring the derivatives industry to adopt standardized computer-readable algorithmic descriptions that may be used to describe complex and standardized financial derivatives” (see Title VII, Sec. 719(b) of Dodd-Frank). Based on the public input, staff investigation and analysis, the joint study concludes that current technology is capable of representing derivatives using a common set of computer-readable descriptions.
These descriptions are precise enough to be used both for the calculation of net exposures and to serve as part or all of a binding legal contract.
The Commissions’ staff study also concludes that before mandating the use of standardized descriptions for all derivatives, the following are needed: a universal entity identifier and product or instrument identifiers, a further analysis of the costs and benefits of having all aspects of legal documents related to derivatives represented electronically and a uniform way to represent financial terms not covered by existing definitions.
To the end, in the Commissions’ staff view, standardized computer-readable descriptions are feasible for at least a broad cross-section of derivatives. The joint study contemplates that other financial regulators and the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Financial Research, along with the Commissions’ staff, will engage in a series of public-private initiatives to foster collaboration between regulators and the derivatives industry, working towards representing a broader cross-section of derivatives in computer-readable form.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) thanks the many members of the derivatives industry and public that provided information for the joint study and thanks the responsible staff at both Commissions for their collaborative efforts. The staff responsible for the CFTC’s participation in the joint study process include: Andrei Kirilenko, Chief Economist and Study Team Lead, JonMarc Buffa; Nancy Doyle, Frank Fisanich, Irina Leonova and John Paul Rothenberg.
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Source: SEC.gov
ETFS Securities USA files with the SEC
April 8, 2011--ETFS Securities USA has filed a FORM S-1 Amendment No.1 with the SEC for the ETFS PHYSICAL BASE METALS TRUST.
view filing
Source: SEC.gov
First Trust files with the SEC
April 8, 2011--First Trust has filed a pre-exemptive amendment, registration statement no. 11 with the SEC for
First Trust Mid Cap Growth AlphaDEX(R) Fund(FNY)
First Trust Mid Cap Value AlphaDEX(R) Fund(FNK) and
First Trust Small Cap Growth AlphaDEX(R) Fund(FYC)
First Trust Small Cap Value AlphaDEX(FYT)
view filing
Source: SEC.gov
First Trust files with the SEC
April 8, 2011--First Trust has filed a pre-effective amendment, registration statement with the SEC for the First Trust AlphaDEX ETFs.
view filing
Source: SEC.gov
U.S. International Reserve Position
April 8, 2011--The Treasury Department today released U.S. reserve assets data for the latest week. As indicated in this table, U.S. reserve assets totaled $141,066 million as of the end of that week, compared to $135,413 million as of the end of the prior week.
I. Official reserve assets and other foreign currency assets (approximate market value, in US millions)
I. Official reserve assets and other foreign currency assets (approximate market value, in US millions)
|
April 4, 2011 | |||
A. Official reserve assets (in US millions unless otherwise specified) 1 |
141,066 | |||
(1) Foreign currency reserves (in convertible foreign currencies) |
Euro |
Yen |
Total | |
(a) Securities |
9,880 |
15,465 |
25,345 | |
of which: issuer headquartered in reporting country but located abroad |
0 | |||
(b) total currency and deposits with: |
||||
(i) other national central banks, BIS and IMF |
14,986 |
6,626 |
21,613 | |
ii) banks headquartered in the reporting country |
0 | |||
of which: located abroad |
0 | |||
(iii) banks headquartered outside the reporting country |
0 | |||
of which: located in the reporting country |
0 | |||
(2) IMF reserve position 2 |
19,320 | |||
(3) SDRs 2 |
58,465 | |||
(4) gold (including gold deposits and, if appropriate, gold swapped) 3 |
11,041 | |||
--volume in millions of fine troy ounces |
261.499 | |||
(5) other reserve assets (specify) |
5,283 | |||
--financial derivatives |
||||
--loans to nonbank nonresidents |
||||
--other (foreign currency assets invested through reverse repurchase agreements) |
5,283 | |||
B. Other foreign currency assets (specify) |
||||
--securities not included in official reserve assets |
||||
--deposits not included in official reserve assets |
||||
--loans not included in official reserve assets |
||||
--financial derivatives not included in official reserve assets |
||||
--gold not included in official reserve assets |
||||
--other |
||||
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Source: US Department of the Treasury
Treasury Department Statement Regarding Decision to Delay Semi-Annual Report to Congress on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies
April 8, 2011--Treasury today announced that it will delay publication of the Semi-Annual Report to Congress on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies of our major trading partners in light of several upcoming, high-level international meetings
the G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting April 14-15, 2011; the Spring Meetings of the IMF and World Bank April 16-17, 2011; and the third U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) in May.
Treasury last published the semi-annual report on February 4, 2011.
Source: US Department of the Treasury
Commission Announces a Roundtable Discussion Regarding Money Market Funds and Systemic Risk
April 8, 2011 - The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that it will host a roundtable discussion in May on money market funds and systemic risk. The roundtable will include participants from the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC).
The roundtable will take place on May 10, 2011, and will provide a forum for various stakeholders in money market funds to exchange views on the potential effectiveness of certain options in mitigating systemic risks associated with money market funds. These will include, but are not limited to, options raised in the President’s Working Group report on possible money market fund reforms that was issued in October 2010 (http://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Documents/10.21%20PWG%20Report%20Final.pdf).
Roundtable panelists are expected to include sponsors of money market funds, short-term debt issuers, investors, and the academic community. A list of participants will be published closer to the date of the roundtable.
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Source: CFTC.gov
Nasdaq plays cost-cutting card
April 7, 2011--Nasdaq OMX believes that it has a significant advantage over its rivals in its attempt to win the favour of NYSE Euronext – a proven ability to cut costs.
Nasdaq, which along with the Intercontinental Exchange bid $11.3bn for NYSE Euronext believes that it can cut the costs of running NYSE by $710m by combining like-for-like US stock exchanges.
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Source: FT.com
State Street Global Advisors Debuts SPDR® Barclays Capital Issuer Scored Corporate Bond Exchange Traded Fund
State Street Global Advisors to Launch Issuer Scored Corporate Index Strategy
April 7, 2011--State Street Global Advisors (SSgA)*, the asset management business of State Street Corporation (NYSE: STT), today announced the launch of the SPDR® Barclays Capital Issuer Scored Corporate Bond Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) (Symbol: CBND). The new ETF provides access to a new corporate bond indexing methodology. SSgA will soon launch its Issuer Scored Corporate Index Strategy to further enhance the firm’s fixed income offering, which includes more than $3811 billion in assets globally.
Designed to provide an alternative to market value weighted index strategies, the SPDR Barclays Capital Issuer Scored Corporate Bond ETF (Symbol: CBND) seeks to track the performance of the Barclays Capital Issuer Scored Corporate Index. The Index includes publicly issued US dollar-denominated corporate issues that are rated investment grade and have $250 million or more of par amount outstanding. Individual issuers in the Index are weighted using the following quantitative measures: return on assets, interest coverage and current ratio. Rebalancing based on these ratios occurs every six months on the last business day of March and September.
“Despite some compression in spreads over the past year, corporate credit remains a very attractive asset class for investors,” said Kevin Anderson, global chief investment officer for Fixed Income and Currency at State Street Global Advisors. “The SPDR Barclays Capital Issuer Scored Corporate Bond ETF and forthcoming SSgA Issuer Scored Corporate Index Strategy strengthen our fixed income offering by providing investors and advisors with solutions that address the concerns some have with the allocation of capital in existing corporate credit index strategies.”
The SPDR Barclays Capital Issuer Scored Corporate Bond ETF began trading on the NYSE Arca on April 7, 2011, and the SSgA Issuer Scored Corporate Index Strategy will soon be available to eligible institutional investors.
“The launch of the SPDR Barclays Capital Issuer Scored Corporate Bond ETF marks the start of a new chapter in fixed income investing,” said James Ross, senior managing director and global head of SPDR Exchange Traded Funds at State Street Global Advisors. “A testament to our commitment to developing innovative SPDR ETFs, CBND can help investors diversify their fixed income holdings with an indexing strategy that provides an effective, transparent means of capturing the sources of corporate bond returns.”
Source: State Street Global Advisors
Standard & Poor's Announces Changes In The S&P/TSX Canadian Indices
April 7, 2011--Standard & Poor's Canadian Index Operations announces the following index changes:
The 5-Year rate reset 1st Preferred shares, Series 24, of National Bank of Canada (TSX:NA.PR.O) are the subject of a $C28.03 cash per share offer and will be removed from the S&P/TSX North American Preferred Stock Index
and the S&P/TSX Preferred Share Index after the close of Monday, April 11, 2011.
Company additions to and deletions from an S&P equity index do not in any way reflect an opinion on the investment merits of the company.
Source: Standard & Poors
