OTC Clear to Accept China Government Bonds as Collateral for All Derivatives LeapRate

January 13, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

OTC Clear to Accept China Government Bonds as Collateral for All Derivatives

The announcement follows approval from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), and the People's Bank of China. HKEX explained that the initiative allows international investors holding these bonds through Bond Connect to use them as margin collateral for OTC derivatives. Initially implemented for Northbound Swap Connect, OTC Clear expects…

January 13, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

CME Group's International ADV Reaches a Record High in 2024

The derivatives marketplace firm said the growth reflects heightened trading activity outside the United States, driven by significant gains across various product categories. The Energy sector led the surge with a 31% increase in ADV, followed by Metals at 27%, Agricultural at 25%, Interest Rate products at 12%, and Foreign Exchange products at 10%. "We…

Plus500 reports strong H2 2019 with revenues up 40% compared to H1

January 13, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Plus500 Revenue 'Meaningfully Ahead' of Market Expectations

In a trading update on Monday, the company reported revenue of approximately $768 million, with an EBITDA of around $342 million, reflecting strong financial performance. The company added that its financial position remains “highly robust” and debt-free, with cash balances of approximately $900 million as of 31 December 2024. Furthermore, Plus500 said its proprietary marketing…

January 10, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Investments for You Fined $25,000 for Supervisory Failures

The Ohio-based broker-dealer was found to have violated several FINRA rules between June 2020 and September 2024. According to FINRA’s investigation, Investments for You did not implement policies to comply with Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), which mandates brokers to act in the best interest of retail customers. “Investments for You failed to establish and…

January 10, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Bank Alfalah Acquires 9.9% Stake in Jingle Pay

Describing Jingle Pay as “one of the fastest growing fintechs in the MENAP region,” Bank Alfalah said the investment highlights “its commitment to driving digital transformation.” Jingle Pay, well-known for its AI-powered tech stack, processed over 2 million transactions and facilitated more than $1 billion in international money transfers in 2024, saving customers over $6…

January 10, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

HKEX Announces 2 Senior Appointments

HKEX revealed that Gregory Yu has been named managing director, head of markets, and Kevin Rumjahn has been appointed as managing director, head of strategic projects. Yu will begin his role in March 2025 after an 18-year tenure at JP Morgan. With over 25 years of experience in capital markets across the US, Hong Kong,…

January 09, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Revolut Partners with Pyth Network as a Data Publisher

The collaboration allows digital banking firm Revolut to contribute its price data to the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. Since its launch in 2015, Revolut has challenged traditional banks with services ranging from international money transfers to cryptocurrency trading. The company now has over 45 million users across 200 countries. Through its partnership with Pyth Network,…

January 09, 2025 BY Leaprate Staff

Exness Takes Center Stage as the Official Sponsor of iFX EXPO Dubai 2025

As the official sponsor, Exness will have a prominent presence, central to the expo’s activities, providing a space for meaningful engagement with attendees. Exness will also contribute key insights through two panel discussions focused on critical industry developments and major trends shaping the sector: Crypto Trading: Finding the Evergreen - Wael Makarem, Exness’ Financial Markets…

January 09, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Easy Exchange Registration as Small Payment Institution Cancelled by FCA

The regulator’s action follows the firm's inability to meet essential conditions under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (PSRs). Easy Exchange, which was registered to provide money remittance services, failed to submit the required annual regulatory reports, known as FSA057 returns, for the years 2021, 2022, and 2023. Despite repeated reminders and warnings from the FCA,…

January 09, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Fidelity Brokerage Services Hit with $600,000 Fine

The fine comes as the regulator said the company failed to adequately supervise its employees' access to client data and the transmittal of funds from international stock plan services (SPS) accounts. The violations, spanning from December 2012 to October 2020, resulted in an associated person converting approximately $750,000 from 37 international plan participants. FINRA's investigation…