S&P Selects SuperDerivatives Credit Derivatives Platform to Power New CDS Indices
It has been a busy month for Standard & Poor’s, what with the launch of a number of products from its Fixed Income Risk Management Services (FIRMS) business and the ongoing investigation of its pricing policies within its Cusip Service Bureau business. Just to prove that the other business lines are also beavering away, the...
Investit to Investigate Sound Practices for Fair Value Pricing with New Working Group
Following requests from its investment management forum, consultancy firm Investit has indicated that it is to embark on an investigation of sound practices in pricing securities, property, OTC derivatives contracts and whole portfolios. Accordingly, the firm and the Investit Intelligence forum have established a fair value pricing working group to examine the issues around pricing...
Valuations and Risk Management Feature Prominently in PWG’s Best Practices
Originally appeared in MiFID Monitor Areas such as valuations, disclosure, risk management, business operations, compliance and conflicts of interest are highlighted as critical areas for the adoption of best practices, according to the two private sector committees tasked with establishing best practices for the fund management industry. The committees, which were established in September 2007...
S&P’s FIRMS Business Joins Valuations Vendor Community with Structured Asset Portfolios Service
As another example of Lou Ecclestone’s revamp of the Standard & Poor’s offering as part of its recently launched Fixed Income Risk Management Services (FIRMS) business, the vendor has added a new valuations service for structured assets and complex securities. The Valuation Scenario Services for Structured Asset Portfolios pits S&P against the competition in the...
Prime Source Adds Interactive Data’s Bond Evaluations to Valuations Service
NYSE Euronext’s valuations service subsidiary, Prime Source, has chosen to add bond evaluations from the Pricing and Reference Data business of Interactive Data to its valuations service. The vendor, which was established in February last year, hopes that the data from Interactive Data will enhance its multi asset-class portfolio valuations service. Prime Source’s service is...
CESR Releases Statement Regarding Instrument Reclassification for Fair Value Accounting
Originally appeared in MiFID Monitor Following a request by the European Commission last October, the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) has released a statement regarding the reclassification of financial instruments for fair value accounting. The regulatory body has worked in cooperation with the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) to tackle the issues identified by...
SEC Continues Defence of Fair Value Accounting Standards
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) again defended its decision to retain fair value accounting standards on 30 December, following further calls from the banking community to suspend the contentious rules. The regulator has previously stated that it will be focused on improving rather than suspending the rules. “Fair-value accounting did not appear to play...
Reval Adds Four to Hedge Accounting Staff in Asia Pacific
Reval, a provider of risk management solutions and services, has expanded its Asia Pacific operations via the hiring of four hedge accounting professionals. Accordingly, Reval has added Blaik Wilson, George Chapman, Bevan Webster and Abhishek Maiti to its regional operations. The vendor, which has operations in Australia, New Zealand and India, indicates that the appointments...
Markit Revises Pricing Consolidation Rules for Markit iBoxx Indices
Markit has indicated that it is implementing changes to the rules governing the consolidation of prices for its iBoxx indices. According to the vendor, these changes are aimed at improving the pricing in illiquid and volatile markets. The Markit iBoxx EUR and Sterling cash bond indices are used by asset managers as a benchmark for...
FASB and IASB Begin Review of Mark to Market Principles
The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has indicated it is beginning a review of mark to market accounting rules in cooperation with the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). The board is said to be considering extending current mark to market principles to a much broader range of securities than they currently cover by taking a...