Derivatives margin threshold should be €100 billion notional not €8 billion, says Isda
A regulatory threshold that requires counterparties to post initial margin (IM) on derivatives trades if they hold €8 billion notional or more exposure should be raised to €100 billion, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association has argued

Astaldi credit event auction will have two deliverables, says DC
Only two Astaldi bonds are deliverable into an auction to determine the final price of its credit default swaps, the Determinations Committee has indicated

Experienced SRT specialist parts ways with Apollo
A big name in the significant risk transfer (SRT) market has left Apollo Global Management in London

Isda transfers credit determinations secretary role to subsidiary
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association has relinquished its role as secretary to the credit derivatives determinations committees (DCs) with the appointment of a new unit, DC Administration Services (DCAS), to manage this function

Isda extends deadline for derivatives benchmark consultation
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association has extended the fast-approaching deadline for its consultation on derivatives benchmark fallbacks, to allow more time for responses

Market rout drives US/Europe credit convergence, as Brazil leads Latin widening
Credit spreads have sharply widened globally as financial markets are being rocked by concerns for a trade war and rising US rates. An equity-led rout in the US yesterday afternoon

Correlation strengthening between company ESG factors and CDS spreads, says Hermes
There is a “significant correlation” between companies that have stronger environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices also benefitting from tighter credit default swap spreads, according to research from Hermes Investment Management

Hard Brexit threatens systemic cliff edge for derivatives, warns joint paper
A no-deal Brexit could have a systemic effect on derivatives markets as it would immediately restrict EU 27 firms from transacting with UK entities and acting as clearing members to UK central counterparties, a group of major trade bodies has warned in a paper published today

ArrowMark builds in London with big SRT hire
ArrowMark is one of the biggest investors in the SRT market, but unusually it conducts most of its business out of the US. It has now added to its presence in London with an experienced official joining its SRT business

Astaldi triggers first credit event in iTraxx on-the-run indices for nine years
Astaldi has triggered a bankruptcy credit event, the Isda-hosted EMEA Credit Determinations Committee has ruled

Astaldi credit event question hangs in balance as EMEA DC meets
The fate of credit default swap contracts referencing Astaldi could be decided today, with the Isda-hosted EMEA Credit Determinations Committee meeting to decide if the Italian builder has triggered a bankruptcy credit event

Isda and Linklaters roll out test version of initial margin docs service
Five and a half months of partnership between the International Swaps and Derivatives Association and Linklaters has borne fruit, with the launch of a test version of an online tool that will allow firms to electronically negotiate and execute initial margin (IM) documentation

Axiom puts tranches at core of push into synthetic credit
Axiom Alternative Investments is set to target both index and bespoke tranches with the launch of Axiom Synthetic Credit Opportunity Fund.

Jefferies creates team and aims to build CSO business
Amid mounting buy-side interest in the synthetic CDO market, sources say that Jefferies is looking to build a US business arranging these transactions  

Hedgers stay put as crossover roll drives trading
Market participants who were positioned short the iTraxx Crossover index, including those using it as a proxy hedge for CLOs, ABS and emerging market credit, are showing greater reluctance than usual to roll into the new series

Astaldi credit event question posed as its distress weighs on iTraxx Crossover
Astaldi, a constituent of iTraxx Crossover, has been referred to ISDA-hosted Credit Determinations Committees as a possible bankruptcy credit event – less than two weeks after the index rolled into a new series

Santander issues £1.1 billion SRT featuring UK project finance loans
Banco Santander has completed a £1.12 billion significant risk transfer through a transaction dubbed Fitzroy 2018-1 CLO

Tesla CDS hits big bump on largely self-driven woes
Tesla Motors’ five-year credit default swap is at a widest-ever print of 21.3/23.3 points up front going into the week

IHS Markit launches derivatives initial margin calculator
IHS Markit has launched an Initial Market Calculation Service to help market participants prepare to meet regulatory requirements for non-cleared derivatives trades across credit, commodities, equities, FX and interest rates

Brexit disruption risk for derivatives is uncomfortably high, Nicky Morgan tells ISDA conference
Brexit cast a long shadow over the International Swaps and Derivatives Association’s Europe Conference in London this week, as keynote speaker Nicky Morgan, chair of the UK’s House of Commons Select Committee, said the likelihood of a no-deal scenario is over 50% and warned about the disruption this would cause to derivative markets

Cairn adds to its SRT investment team in London
Cairn Capital has appointed Chris Cottrell as senior investment analyst

BlackRock becomes latest manager to explore interval fund structure for credit
Several managers have hit the market with the interval fund structure, as investors look to invest in illiquid strategies through an illiquid fund structure

Orchard hires former UBS credit index options and tranches global head
Orchard Global Asset Management has hired an ex-UBS senior correlation trader as a portfolio manager in London

Crossover users face waking up to much tighter index amid credit selection rule change
September could bring the biggest conceptual repurposing of the iTraxx Crossover index since its series 22 expansion, with IHS Markit set to overhaul rules governing how constituent credits are selected

Loss absorbing rules spell wider trading for financials index
An unusually wide roll is expected in the iTraxx Europe Senior Financials basket when it moves from series 29 to 30 this month, as Danish and Spanish banks begin to include new senior non-preferred bonds as their reference obligations for credit default swap contracts