Your guide to the happenings in derivatives markets and trading since 2000
John Lothian Newsletter
Today's Newsletter
Thinning Liquidity in Key Futures Market Worries Traders
Get a FREE 90 day trial of John Lothian Newsletter First Read The Industry Leader Series: Terry Duffy, CME Group JohnLothianNews.com Every year, John Lothian News puts together an industry leader series filmed at FIA's annual conference in...
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JLN Options Newsletter
Today's Newsletter
The CAT Saga Continues; Treasury Swings Jump Like It’s 2016
The day’s options and derivatives news from financial services professionals. Today’s newsletter covers increased volatility in Treasury markets and the ongoing saga with the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT).
Everything you need to know about Options Today
Lead Stories
JLN’s Industry Leader Series: Terry Duffy, CME Group
Every year, John Lothian News puts together an industry leader series filmed at FIA’s annual conference in Boca Raton. The number of interviews filmed this year is a JLN record and the footprint of the market participants involved is similarly...
SG America’s FCM business aims to be different
In today’s FCM world, it’s tough to be different.
The job is still pretty straightforward – help clients execute trades and manage the post-trade process. There are more steps and pieces that come with that than most participants know or want to know. Most just want to get a trade done and booked and move along to the next one.
MarketsWiki
Page of the day
CME Group E-mini S&P 500 Futures
Liquidity in the CME Group’s E-mini S&P 500 Futures is thinning and the contract is getting harder to trade since volatility shook up the U.S. stock market in 2018. This is leading to worry that it could make the stock market more susceptible to shocks, the Wall Street Journal reported.
CryptoMarketsWiki
Page of the day
OKEx
OKEx, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, blogged that it would launch a decentralized exchange on its own dedicated blockchain.
Lead Stories
JLN’s Industry Leader Series: Terry Duffy, CME Group
Every year, John Lothian News puts together an industry leader series filmed at FIA’s annual conference in Boca Raton. The number of interviews filmed this year is a JLN record and the footprint of the market participants involved is similarly...
SG America’s FCM business aims to be different
In today’s FCM world, it’s tough to be different.
The job is still pretty straightforward – help clients execute trades and manage the post-trade process. There are more steps and pieces that come with that than most participants know or want to know. Most just want to get a trade done and booked and move along to the next one.
JPX set to acquire Tokyo Commodity Exchange
Get a FREE 90 day trial of John Lothian Newsletter First ReadHits & TakesJLN StaffThe CFTC's Technology Advisory Committee will meet on Wednesday in Washington, DC. I will be in attendance and can confirm I have been appointed to another...
The Spread – The Madness Sets In – 3/22
Pick your Madness - Fed, Mueller or March 'Tis the season for college allegiances to come roaring back to the forefront of conversation, but the options world stops for no one. In this week's episode the following stories are referenced: ...
ICE Bitcoin Futures Launch Hits Regulatory Snag; Hedge fund launches fall to 18-year low
Get a FREE 90 day trial of John Lothian Newsletter First ReadHits & TakesJLN StaffYesterday I had a procedure on my hip where I was given an anesthesia drug whose effects could best be described as a psychedelic trip of "Mister Toad's Wild...
Go Small or Go Home: CME’s Micro Launch
Smaller contract means more flexibility There are anywhere from 50,000 to 200,000 active retail users of futures. Meanwhile, there are some 13 million retail accounts trading other parts of the market that do not trade futures. CME Group wants...
Saving Big Money: How a small fintech firm figured out how to save banks billions with DLT
There’s a lot of chatter these days about the viability, perhaps even the legitimacy, of distributed ledger systems for the financial markets. Lost in the “blockchain is dead” noise are some interesting cases that show just how DLT technologies can be used effectively in key pain points in the market.
Ex-CFTC chairman calls for SEC to regulate cryptocurrencies
Economic Studies at Brookings yesterday dropped a call for better regulation of the cryptocurrency and digital assets industries by none other than Tim Massad, the former chairman of the CFTC. As befits the former head of an agency that embraced principles-based regulation, Massad’s paper is long on analysis of the industries and the regulatory issues that seem to afflict business conditions.
Chicago Mayor Emanuel addresses FinTank meeting, makes case for Chicago as crypto and fintech hub
In what might prove to be a seminal moment in the development of the cryptocurrency and blockchain community in Chicago, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel addressed an audience of nearly 150 on Monday. Extolling the virtues that Chicago possesses, Emanuel made the case that the city has the opportunity to become a preeminent global fintech center.
The Spread – There Goes the Sun – 3/18
Last year we filmed our FIA Boca edition of "The Spread" in a pool. However, we were at a different Airbnb this time, so you are not in for a repeat treat. The following are the stories referenced in this week's episode: -CME Group -> CME...
The Small Exchange: Building a new ecosystem for the little fish
It's about time this industry got smaller. It's no secret futures markets have been built largely for the average multinational commercial operation, well capitalized market markers, hedge funds, CTAs and proprietary trading groups. Retail...
Pardon our dust: Crypto markets still have some building to do
The institutionalization of the crypto market is going to take some time – be patient.
Panelists on the cryptocurrency panel at FIA Boca said there is still infrastructure building that needs to be done before the asset class becomes mainstream.
JPX set to acquire Tokyo Commodity Exchange
Get a FREE 90 day trial of John Lothian Newsletter First ReadHits & TakesJLN StaffThe CFTC's Technology Advisory Committee will meet on Wednesday in Washington, DC. I will be in attendance and can confirm I have been appointed to another...
The Spread – The Madness Sets In – 3/22
Pick your Madness - Fed, Mueller or March 'Tis the season for college allegiances to come roaring back to the forefront of conversation, but the options world stops for no one. In this week's episode the following stories are referenced: ...
ICE Bitcoin Futures Launch Hits Regulatory Snag; Hedge fund launches fall to 18-year low
Get a FREE 90 day trial of John Lothian Newsletter First ReadHits & TakesJLN StaffYesterday I had a procedure on my hip where I was given an anesthesia drug whose effects could best be described as a psychedelic trip of "Mister Toad's Wild...
Go Small or Go Home: CME’s Micro Launch
Smaller contract means more flexibility There are anywhere from 50,000 to 200,000 active retail users of futures. Meanwhile, there are some 13 million retail accounts trading other parts of the market that do not trade futures. CME Group wants...
Saving Big Money: How a small fintech firm figured out how to save banks billions with DLT
There’s a lot of chatter these days about the viability, perhaps even the legitimacy, of distributed ledger systems for the financial markets. Lost in the “blockchain is dead” noise are some interesting cases that show just how DLT technologies can be used effectively in key pain points in the market.
Ex-CFTC chairman calls for SEC to regulate cryptocurrencies
Economic Studies at Brookings yesterday dropped a call for better regulation of the cryptocurrency and digital assets industries by none other than Tim Massad, the former chairman of the CFTC. As befits the former head of an agency that embraced principles-based regulation, Massad’s paper is long on analysis of the industries and the regulatory issues that seem to afflict business conditions.
Chicago Mayor Emanuel addresses FinTank meeting, makes case for Chicago as crypto and fintech hub
In what might prove to be a seminal moment in the development of the cryptocurrency and blockchain community in Chicago, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel addressed an audience of nearly 150 on Monday. Extolling the virtues that Chicago possesses, Emanuel made the case that the city has the opportunity to become a preeminent global fintech center.
The Spread – There Goes the Sun – 3/18
Last year we filmed our FIA Boca edition of "The Spread" in a pool. However, we were at a different Airbnb this time, so you are not in for a repeat treat. The following are the stories referenced in this week's episode: -CME Group -> CME...
The Small Exchange: Building a new ecosystem for the little fish
It's about time this industry got smaller. It's no secret futures markets have been built largely for the average multinational commercial operation, well capitalized market markers, hedge funds, CTAs and proprietary trading groups. Retail...
Pardon our dust: Crypto markets still have some building to do
The institutionalization of the crypto market is going to take some time – be patient.
Panelists on the cryptocurrency panel at FIA Boca said there is still infrastructure building that needs to be done before the asset class becomes mainstream.
How Chris Giancarlo Helped The Futures Industry Get Its Groove Back
Chris Giancarlo will go down as perhaps the most popular regulator in industry history. The CFTC chairman, who will step down this year after joining the agency in January 2017, gave his farewell address at the FIA Boca conference this year with a focus on the agency’s achievements during his term.
Chinese Day Traders Manipulating US Markets
Chinese-based day traders are taking increasingly sophisticated steps to manipulate stocks traded on US markets, according to a surveillance firm executive.
Research and analysis conducted by Eventus Systems, a compliance, surveillance, and risk management firm, has detected regular instances of manipulation by Chinese-based traders trading predominantly Chinese companies listed on US stock exchanges.
China’s Night Traders Are Moving U.S. Stocks
Get a FREE 90 day trial of John Lothian Newsletter First Read Hits & Takes JLN Staff The JLN staff arrived safely in Boca Raton for the FIA International Conference at the Boca Resort. Our plans for renting a Chevrolet Suburban to transport...
New York’s New West Coast Digs
New trading floor just a part of NYSE's new San Francisco facility NYSE is set to have new digs in San Francisco when its NYSE West facility opens Monday, March 11. Obviously, New York is the area most thought of when it comes to all things...
2018 MarketsWiki Education Series
our series of talks featuring top professionals from the financial industry aimed at students, interns and first year professionals.
The Chicago Ecosystem For Crypto Assets And Blockchain Technology – Colleen Sullivan, CMT Digital
"In order to have a healthy ecosystem for a new industry you really need four components. One is government involvement/regulatory clarity, two is academic institution involvement, three is trade associations and other advocacy...
Rules for CEOs, Senior Managers, Interns and Bob’s Kids – Bob Fitzsimmons, Wedbush
"Understand the implications, the ramifications of what you do - what it does downstream and what it does upstream. Understand the whole process." What do "Patton," "The Right Stuff" and "Goodfellas" have in common? They're all used...
The Growing Value of Data – Oliver Albers, Nasdaq
"When I started in this business, data was very, very uncool. Trust me." Data is not uncool any longer. Consider that every minute there are more than 12 million texts sent and more than 4.3 million YouTube videos watched. It is...
Lessons from My Crypto Career Risk – Tim McCourt, CME Group
"[In July 2000, my boss] said, 'Tim, tomorrow, you're going to start on the equity derivatives desk at JP Morgan.' I was like, 'Fantastic. I'm super excited.' I go home, no one really has a laptop, I got my first cell phone two...
Avoiding Spoofing Shortfalls – Renato Mariotti, Thompson Coburn
Renato Mariotti prosecuted Michael Coscia for spoofing as a federal prosecutor, ran for Illinois attorney general and can frequently be seen on cable television commenting on current events. So when he talks about spoofing and markets,...
Cognitive Flexibility in Finance – Kevin Darby, Blue Trading Systems
"Don't over-engineer it. There's a huge tendency, especially for technical people, to make up complexity." The problems Kevin Darby, managing partner at Blue Trading Systems, encounters as a fintech vendor are very different from...
Discussing “InfoSec” – Mike Phillips, VSEC
"How many small or medium business can survive a $3.5 million hit? When small and medium business get hit, they typically go out of business. When the big ones get hit, know what they do? They change their names." If it is connected...
