Comment EM and The Cover

Toys R Us has become the latest CDS name to default after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Two very different credit issuers have been drawn together in the CDS market as the prospect of changed reference entities tightens their spreads, writes Gavan Nolan.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman Christopher Giancarlo's warning to Europe against taking “unilateral” action in changing rules tied to G-20 commitments made in 2009 is right. While there are concerns about the future regulatory relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union, derivatives clearing is a global issue.

Tech giant Amazon’s acquisition of American supermarket chain Whole Foods has caused much speculation since it was announced in June. Is it death knell for some traditional grocers? Will it revive others which may now be in Amazon’s sights?

European banks are pushing the conversation on from simply meeting regulatory capital requirements towards optimising the cost of their capital stacks.

Saudi Arabia is reportedly planning to dilute its much touted National Transformation Program, a worrying sign for investors that confirms the doubts of observers who said the country’s Vision 2030 plan was too ambitious.

Reinsurers have historically been resilient through hurricanes such as those hitting the Caribbean and US this week, but that hasn't stopped CDS widening in the sector's big names, writes IHS Markit's Gavan Nolan.

It is not unusual to hear DCM bankers on sterling deals talk about the sophisticated nature of the investor base. Issuers on roadshows also often say they feel they have the best dialogues with UK-based investors, who have often done their credit work before meetings and want to discuss details in more depth than the usual page turning of an investor presentation deck.

Venezuela’s bond market access is already negligible. If market participants want to take a moral position, they need to think about more than just new issues.

With a flurry of fanfare the Schuldscheinbörse Deutschland — the first attempt at a secondary market for Schuldschein loans — launched on the exchange floors of Hamburg and Hanover.

Since the European Central Bank commenced its quantitative easing programmes in 2009 investors have been complaining about the smaller allocations of bonds they have been receiving in new issues. This has been felt most acutely since corporate bonds were included in the programme from March 2016.

This week Brian Quintenz was sworn in as a commissioner at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), after he was confirmed alongside chairman Christopher Giancarlo and Rostin Behnam by the Senate two weeks ago.