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NEW YORK, July 27 (Reuters) - Bill Hwang, the founder of Archegos Capital Management, on Thursday asked a judge to let him subpoena documents from 10 banks, in an effort to shift blame as he defends against criminal fraud charges that the firm's collapse was his fault. The office of U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, which is prosecuting Hwang, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Other banks also lost money when Archegos collapsed, but less than Credit Suisse. That caused it to miss margin calls, and banks to dump stocks that had backed the swaps and which they had bought as hedges. The case is U.S. v. Hwang et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

Persons: Bill Hwang, Hwang, Damian Williams, Archegos, Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, Mitsubishi UFJ, Morgan Stanley, Nomura, Alvin Hellerstein, Hwang et, Jonathan Stempel, Daniel Wallis Organizations: YORK, Archegos Capital Management, UBS, Credit Suisse, Prosecutors, Bank of Montreal, Deutsche Bank, Mitsubishi, Court, Southern District of, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, Macquarie, Mizuho, U.S, Southern District, Southern District of New York, New York

☆ UAE crypto scammer sentenced to 8 years in prison for multimillion dollar fraud scheme
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A United Arab Emirates resident and Nigerian citizen was sentenced to 8 years in federal prison for orchestrating a multi-million dollar fraud scheme that victimized businesses across the U.S., Illinois federal prosecutors said. Ponle worked with a network of scammers to masquerade as corporate entities using phishing emails. Ponle will forfeit those items, collectively valued at over $1 million, and pay more than $8 million in restitution to victim companies. Ponle was prosecuted despite the lack of an extradition treaty between the UAE and the United States. Federal officials at the DOJ'S Office of International Affairs worked with their UAE counterparties to secure Ponle's rendition.

Persons: Olaekan Jacob Ponle, Ponle, Royce Cullinan, Lamborghini Organizations: Jumeirah, United, United Arab Emirates, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Justice Department, Royce, UAE, Federal, DOJ'S, International Affairs, UAE counterparties Locations: Dubai, United Arab Emirates, United Arab, U.S, , Illinois, UAE, Nigeria, Nigerian, United States

☆ Big companies toughen banking partner screening after crisis - survey
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Laura Matthews | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, July 13 (Reuters) - Large companies are spreading out their counterparty risk and increasing screening of their banking partners in response to the recent banking crisis that has been a "wake-up call", according to an industry survey to be released on Thursday. Multinational companies and those with sales overseas use banks, or counterparties to the transactions, to trade foreign exchange and hedge currency risk. "All of a sudden there's a wake-up call," said Eric Huttman, CEO at MillTechFX, the specialist currency arm of Millennium Global. Huttman said his firm has added dozens of clients since the banking crisis and all of them have spent more time asking about its counterparty selection process. "The broad questions that companies are asking are, is my banking partner sound and will they be there when I need them," said Dhargalkar.

Persons: Eric Huttman, Huttman, Amol Dhargalkar, Banks, Laura Matthews, Megan Davies, Muralikumar Organizations: YORK, MillTechFX, Millennium, UBS, Credit Suisse, Chatham Financial, Thomson Locations: North America, Europe, Swiss

☆ Russian asset manager files $2 billion Euroclear lawsuit in Moscow
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MOSCOW, July 12 (Reuters) - One of Russia's oldest asset managers, First AM, has filed a claim for 184.8 billion roubles ($2.04 billion) with the Moscow Arbitration Court against Euroclear Bank, court documents showed, trying to protect investors whose assets were frozen. Sanctions on Russia's National Settlement Depository (NSD), as well as other Western measures aimed at restricting Russia's access to global financial infrastructure, have blocked many Russian investors' access to securities held in jurisdictions outside Russia. First AM, formerly known as Sber Asset Management, had 1.44 trillion roubles in assets under management as of September 2022. In 2022, it blocked Russian investors' operations on assets which were accounted for in the NSD account." Late last year, First AM applied to European authorities to unblock its assets at Euroclear and Clearstream.

Persons: Euroclear, Elena Fabrichnaya, Alexander Marrow, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Court, Euroclear Bank, Settlement Depository, Asset Management, Reuters, NSD, European Union, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Moscow, Russia, European, Belgium, Kremlin, Euroclear, Luxembourg

☆ Ken Griffin's Citadel is rebuilding one of its most critical platforms. Here's an inside look at the project.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The platform is currently being rolled out and will let the fund move into new asset classes faster. Now, the migration to a new reference-data platform is underway. With the new solution, Citadel says, it will be able to move into new asset classes much faster. With the new platform, Citadel can respond when new asset classes come into the market, like cryptocurrencies or collectibles. "It's critical for our systems to accommodate growth in various asset classes and support the ever-increasing crossover between them," Tan said.

Persons: Rituraj Deb Nath, Deb Nath, Robert Tan, Tan, It's, Goldman Sachs, There's Organizations: Citadel, Citadel Securities, Google, Bank of America

The lending unit of crypto firm Genesis filed for bankruptcy in January after the collapse of key counterparties including FTX caused it to freeze customer redemptions in November. Its largest creditor is Gemini, founded by billionaire identical twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss who are also former U.S. Olympic rowers. A bankruptcy court appointed a mediator in April to help Genesis, DCG and its creditors agree on a restructuring plan, but the parties have yet to reach a deal despite several extensions. Under the offer, DCG would retain the proceeds from the sale of Genesis' lending unit. If Silbert and DCG do not agree, Gemini will sue Silbert and DCG, and file a motion to place DCG in default and demand immediate debt repayments, Winklevoss said.

Persons: Cameron, Tyler Winklevoss, Gemini, Barry Silbert, Cameron Winklevoss, Winklevoss, DCG, Mark Zuckerberg, Silbert, ” Winklevoss, Hannah Lang, Dietrich Knauth, Michelle Price, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Digital Currency Group, Gemini, U.S, Olympic, Reuters, Genesis, Meta, Facebook, Thomson Locations: Connecticut, Washington

☆ Helping investors buy thousands of run-down houses on the cheap was to be the specialty of this proptech. Not even Dr. Phil could save it.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Stech told the wholesaler that the woman deserved some of that profit. "He looked me square in the eyes and said, 'That's all she said she needed,'" Stech told Dr. Phil. But Sundae, Stech said, marketed homes directly to investors, who would bid up the price in an effort to win the property. Two of the former Sundae employees told Insider that they often had to make determinations about the mental fitness of their elderly customers. When Insider asked Canavari about the layoffs in June, she told Insider that she was leaving the company herself.

Persons: Sundae, it's, Josh Stech, Phil, Phil —, —, Phil's, Stech, who'd, Andrew Swain Sundae, Peter Thiel's, Will Smith, Isaiah Thomas, HomeVestors, Susan Canavari, Canavari, Phil McGraw, Chris Terry, Terry, Opendoor, I'd, Dawn Tarner, Beth Sallomi Organizations: Fund, Investors, Getty, Facebook Locations: Sundae, Vegas, mailers, Atlanta, Florida

☆ Baupost Group's Seth Klarman found the next 'hunting ground' for value investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Baupost Group's Seth Klarman called real estate a "hunting ground" for investors searching for opportunities. "There are hunting grounds that one would want to look," the press-shy Klarman told CNBC's "Squawk Box" in an exclusive interview Tuesday morning. "We think real estate is an area that is full of so many fundamental challenges. The S & P 500 sector is down nearly 1%, even as the broader index is 12% higher. Last year, the billionaire investor posted a mid-single-digit decline, outperforming the S & P 500's double-digit retreat, according to a Financial Times report .

Persons: Baupost, Seth Klarman, Klarman, CNBC's, Warren Buffett Organizations: Investors, Harvard, Cornell, Financial

☆ Crypto is dead: long live crypto!
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Felix Martin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

The end of near-zero interest rates, quantitative easing and pandemic-era fiscal stimulus has sent prices crashing back to earth. Rising real interest rates have proved to be kryptonite for crypto, as for so many other speculative assets. The normalisation of interest rates may have done for crypto in its most recent incarnation as a get-rich-quick scheme. The proposition that the circulation of private currencies might be economically beneficial has also been around for a while. Nevertheless, history shows that for privately issued currencies to attain critical mass it has typically required more than just the availability of viable alternatives.

Persons: cryptocurrencies, Gary Gensler, noncompliance, Balaji Srinivasan, marc ”, Paul Krugman, Friedrich Hayek’s, Money ”, James Steuart, ”, Crypto, Long, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Coinbase, SEC, State, Brixton, counterparties, Central Bank of, Thomson Locations: Ithaca, Scottish, United States, Central Bank of Argentina

☆ The EU is losing patience with European banks still making money in Russia. A top official is now pressuring them to exit the market 'as soon as they can.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A top ECB official called on EU banks still operating in Russia to exit the market asap. His comments followed news that some Western firms are still operating in Russia, despite sweeping sanctions. It's unclear how many Western banks are still doing business in Russia. The Financial Times reported in January that just a handful of the 45 Western banks with subsidiaries in Russia have managed to exit. Still, EU banks have managed to reduce their exposures to Russian counterparties by 37% in 2022, he said.

Persons: —, Russia —, Andrea Enria, Enria, it's Organizations: ECB, Service, European, European Central Bank, European Financials Conference, Financial Times, Novaya Gazeta Europe, Austria's, Raiffeisen, Reuters, Yale University, Russia Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Novaya

☆ Some European banks are still making money in Russia. The EU is losing patience and pressuring them to exit the market ASAP.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

☆ UAE central bank issues AML/CTF guidance for dealing with virtual assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DUBAI, May 31 (Reuters) - The UAE Central Bank has issued new anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing guidance for financial institutions when dealing with virtual assets, such as cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens, it said on Wednesday. The new guidance discusses the risks arising from dealing with virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, including on due diligence for licensed financial institutions when dealing with these customers and counterparties, the statement said. The guidance, which will come into effect within a month, applies to banks, finance companies, exchange houses, payment service providers, registered hawala providers and insurance companies, agents and brokers. The bank said the guidance takes Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards into account. The FATF in March 2022 included the UAE on a list of jurisdictions subject to increased monitoring, known as its "grey" list.

Persons: FATF, Clauda Tanios, Lisa Barrington, Sharon Singleton Organizations: UAE Central Bank, Thomson Locations: DUBAI, UAE

☆ Turkey's runoff election is paralyzing key oil exports from northern Iraq
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Oil typically flows through Turkey from both the Iraqi state and the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). More specifically, this Kirkuk crude flows down the Iraq-Turkey Pipeline linking the north of the Gulf country with Turkey's Ceyhan port in the Mediterranean. But the flows have been paralyzed since March 25 by a legal dispute involving federal Iraq, the KRG and Turkey. This decision led to U.S. companies deciding to exit contracts in Kurdistan and deterred some KRG oil buyers from further purchases. "The ruling party in Turkey [Erdogan's AKP] wants to settle the elections and then deal with KRG's oil with Baghdad."

Persons: KRG, Hayan Abdul, Ghani, —, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, Lawk Ghafuri, Yerevan Saeed, Saeed, Bilal Wahab, Wagner Organizations: CNBC, Kurdistan Regional Government, Turkey Pipeline, International, Commerce's, Reuters, ICC, Baghdad, BTC, Kurdistan, Gulf Institute, Sinjar, Washington Institute for Near East Locations: Turkey, Ankara, Baghdad, Iraqi, Kurdistan, Kirkuk, Iraq, Basra, Paris, U.S, Ceyhan, Baku, Syria, Erbil, Yerevan, Washington

☆ UBS flags $17 bln hit from Credit Suisse takeover
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

May 16 (Reuters) - UBS Group AG (UBSG.S) expects a financial hit of about $17 billion from the takeover of Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.S), the bank said in a presentation early on Wednesday as it prepares to complete the rescue of its struggling Swiss rival. The Swiss state is backing the deal with up to 250 billion Swiss francs in public funds. Switzerland's government is providing a guarantee of up to 9 billion francs for further potential losses on a clearly defined part of Credit Suisse portfolio. Credit Suisse faces certain restrictions in its ability to do business until its acquisition by UBS is completed, according to a regulatory filing on Tuesday. Following the legal closing of the transaction, UBS Group AG plans to manage two separate parent companies – UBS AG and Credit Suisse AG, UBS said last week.

☆ UBS flags $17 billion hit from Credit Suisse takeover
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Meanwhile, UBS has implemented a number of restrictions on Credit Suisse while the takeover is underway. Credit Suisse also cannot undertake capital expenditure of more than 10 million francs or enter into certain contracts worth more than 3 million francs per year. The filing shows Credit Suisse cannot order any "material amendments" to its employee terms and conditions, including remuneration and pension entitlements, till deal closure. The Swiss state is backing the deal with up to 250 billion Swiss francs in public funds. Following the legal closing of the transaction, UBS Group AG plans to manage two separate parent companies – UBS AG and Credit Suisse AG, UBS said last week.

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, May 15 (Reuters) - As talks over raising the U.S. government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling intensify, Wall Street banks and asset managers have begun preparing for fallout from a potential default. Citigroup (C.N) CEO Jane Fraser said this debate on the debt ceiling is "more worrying" than previous ones. U.S. government bonds underpin the global financial system so it is difficult to fully gauge the damage a default would create, but executives expect massive volatility across equity, debt and other markets. Banks, brokers and trading platforms are prepping for disruption to the Treasury market, as well as broader volatility. Bond trading platform Tradeweb said it was in discussions with clients, industry groups, and other market participants about contingency plans.

Besides Koerner, who spent over a decade at UBS before returning to Credit Suisse in 2021, UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti largely leaned on UBS executives in pulling together his new team. Commenting on Koerner's future role, UBS said Koerner would be responsible for Credit Suisse's operational continuity and client focus, while supporting its integration. Credit Suisse executive board members will report to both their relevant UBS executive board member and Koerner. Reuters reported last week that options under consideration for that business include a sale or an initial public offering of Credit Suisse's domestic unit. “This is a pivotal moment for UBS, Credit Suisse and the entire banking industry," Ermotti said in the statement.

☆ UBS says Credit Suisse CEO Ulrich Koerner will join its board
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Besides Körner, who spent over a decade at UBS before returning to Credit Suisse in 2021, UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti largely leaned on UBS executives in pulling together his new team. Some media had speculated that a number of Credit Suisse bankers would take up senior roles at the new group. Credit Suisse executive board members will report to both their relevant UBS executive board member and Körner. “This is a pivotal moment for UBS, Credit Suisse and the entire banking industry,” Ermotti said in the statement Tuesday. Zuercher Kantonalbank said this meant there would be initially no big changes for the current Credit Suisse management.

☆ Monitoring Financial Institution Compliance
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +41 min

Compliance MonitorshipsA compliance monitor (also called an independent examiner or independent compliance consultant) is an impartial party appointed by the government to detect the root causes of the institution’s compliance failures. The purpose of a compliance monitor is not to address a particular compliance failure or punish the institution. Responded to compliance issues, in a timely manner and in a way that demonstrates that the institution takes compliance issues seriously. Compliance Department EmployeesThe monitor must evaluate the adequacy of compliance department employees, including the number of compliance employees, their experience, and their expertise. Assess the Compliance SystemsThe monitor typically engages compliance technology experts, who have specific knowledge of coding and compliance technology software, to test and evaluate the institution’s compliance systems.

☆ Resolving Credit Suisse: an alternative history
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Reuters GraphicsThe market shock will be all the more extreme because Credit Suisse doesn’t obviously need more capital. It seems perverse to put taxpayer money on the line while leaving the Credit Suisse bonds untouched. Of the 30 global lenders classed as systemically important by the Financial Stability Board, Credit Suisse is the third-smallest by total assets. It also enables the Swiss National Bank to offer Credit Suisse an open-ended credit line, hopefully ending the bank run. Credit Suisse is suffering from a crisis of confidence brought on by years of mismanagement, rather than a system-wide meltdown.

☆ NY Fed limits types of firms that can access its reverse repo facility
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Michael S. Derby | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Accessing the reverse repo facility “should be a natural extension of an existing business model, and the counterparty should not be organized for the purpose of accessing [reverse repo] operations,” the bank said. The New York Fed did not say in its statement what prompted it to clarify the terms of access for reverse repo counterparties. The last time the Fed issued a statement on the reverse repo tool was two years ago, when it clarified some of the conditions a firm must meet to use the reverse repo tool. The reverse repo facility, now at 4.8%, sets the low end of the range. Fed officials have long argued that as they raise rates and normalize monetary policy, they expect money to drain out of the reverse repo facility.

☆ U.S. financial regulators to tighten rules on non-banks, systemic risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - Top U.S. regulators on Friday proposed new rules to speed the assessment of financial stability risks and make it easier to designate non-bank institutions as systemically important, subjecting them to Federal Reserve supervision. The multi-regulator Financial Stability Oversight Council released the proposals for public comment just over a month after two regional bank failures sparked the biggest financial system contagion threat since the 2008 financial crisis. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has raised concerns about non-bank financial institutions, including hedge funds, because of their lack of supervision and the potential for systemic spillovers from firms in distress. NOT USHedge fund, mutual fund and asset manager trade groups responded by saying that regulators should look elsewhere for threats to financial stability. The new framework also specifies vulnerabilities that FSOC and member regulators would consider when evaluating potential stability risks.

☆ U.S. financial regulators to tighten rules on non-bank firms, risk assessment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - The Financial Stability Oversight Council on Friday proposed guidance to make it easier to designate non-bank financial institutions for regulatory supervision and new procedures to better identify and respond to financial system risks. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has raised concerns about non-bank financial institutions, including hedge funds, private equity firms and pension funds as a potential source of financial instability because of a lack of supervision and. The new guidance removes some "inappropriate hurdles" to designating non-bank firms and replaces them with a process that allows for firms under review to have significant engagement with regulators. RISKS, VULNERABILITIESFSOC's proposed new risk assessment framework aims to enhance the council's ability to address financial stability risks by reviewing a broad range of asset classes, institutions and activities, according to a Treasury fact sheet. The new framework also specifies vulnerabilities that FSOC and member regulators would consider when evaluating potential stability risks.

☆ Bank of England deepens supervisory cooperation with US CFTC
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LONDON, April 14 (Reuters) - The Bank of England said on Friday that it was deepening its cooperation with the United States' Commodities Futures Trading Commission regarding the supervision of cross-border central counterparties (CCPs), a key part of financial infrastructure. "The CFTC and the Bank reaffirm the primacy of the UK and US home authorities in their respective jurisdictions," the BoE said in a statement. The BoE said that it would recognise CFTC assessments of U.S.-based CCPs which operate in Britain. "This assessment enables the Bank to place reliance on the CFTC's supervision and oversight of incoming CCPs based in the US," it said. Reporting by David Milliken, editing by Andy BruceOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Morning Bid: Banks are leaking money
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

There is some relief that First Citizens BancShares Inc (FCNCA.O) is in advanced talks to acquire Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O). There was also some talk the Federal Reserve could expand its new lending programme for banks as another step to reassuring depositors. Money is clearly flowing out of smaller banks toward their bigger siblings and to money market funds, which have seen an inflow of more than $300 billion in the past month to a record $5.1 trillion. Capital Economics points out that deposits across all the banks have fallen by $663 billion in the past year as customers search for higher yield. Deutsche Bank's five-year CDS hit 222 bps on Friday, the highest since late 2018, while UBS CDS shot up to 139 bps.

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