Article: Danske bypasses money laundering legacy in AT1 return

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Danske bypasses money laundering legacy in AT1 return

Tom Revell, 14 May 2021

The lender also took on a challenging market backdrop as it offered investors a US$750m perpetual non-call November 2026 Reg S transaction. The deal came after a volatile session for global stocks on Tuesday, which nudged bank subordinated debt wider in the secondary market and, in the US onshore market, saw insurer Liberty Mutual postpone a junior subordinated note issue.

Some observers were surprised by Danske’s decision to come hot on the heels of Liberty’s postponement. A 4.75% US$1bn Banco Santander AT1 offering sold on May 6 also contributed to a tricky backdrop after it struggled to perform and was bid at a cash price of 99.50 on Wednesday. Continue reading “Article: Danske bypasses money laundering legacy in AT1 return”

Article: London Gold Fix study suggests decade of bank manipulation

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London Gold Fix study suggests decade of bank manipulation

Bloomberg News, 28 February 2014

The London gold fix, the benchmark used by miners, jewellers and central banks to value the metal, may have been manipulated for a decade by the banks setting it, researchers say.

Unusual trading patterns around 3 p.m. in London, when the so-called afternoon fix is set on a private conference call between five of the biggest gold dealers, are a sign of collusive behavior and should be investigated, New York University’s Stern School of Business Professor Rosa Abrantes-Metz and Albert Metz, a managing director at Moody’s Investors Service, wrote in a draft research paper.

“The structure of the benchmark is certainly conducive to collusion and manipulation, and the empirical data are consistent with price artificiality,” they say in the report, which hasn’t yet been submitted for publication. “It is likely that co-operation between participants may be occurring.”

The paper is the first to raise the possibility that the five banks overseeing the century-old rate —Barclays Plc, Deutsche Bank AG, Bank of Nova Scotia, HSBC Holdings Plc and Societe Generale SA — may have been actively working together to manipulate the benchmark. It also adds to pressure on the firms to overhaul the way the rate is calculated. Authorities around the world, already investigating the manipulation of benchmarks from interest rates to foreign exchange, are examining the $20 trillion gold market for signs of wrongdoing.

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THE DOLLAR HAS NO INTRINSIC VALUE : DO YOUR ASSETS?