French Police raid Societe Generale Rogue Trader's Apartment

Police have raided the apartment of the Societe Generale dealer at the heart of a seven-billion-dollar rogue trader scandal that the French bank's chairman described Saturday as an "accidental fire." Beside is a picture of Jerome Kerviel's Neuilly flat. Kerviel, 31, was being held for questioning after arriving in a police van at the headquarters of the Paris police's financial brigade around 2:00 pm (1300 GMT), said the source.He had dropped out of sight before the bank announced its colossal losses on Thursday, which slashed the bank's 2007 profit to 600-800 million euros from 5.2 billion in 2006An unmarked car and the van had left the financial brigade building an hour earlier, returning to its underground car park with Kerviel while a strong force of police kept back journalists.
The detention came after police raided Kerviel's apartment on Friday in the wealthy Paris suburb of Neuilly sur Seine, taking away documents, and also took possession of computer files at the bank's Paris headquarters.

French prosecutors confirmed the raid on the apartment in the western Paris suburb of Neuilly of Jerome Kerviel, the 31-year-old blamed for amassing the losses which cost the banking giant 4.9 billion euros (7.15 billion dollars). Police officers also went Friday to the bank's Paris headquarters to seize Kerviel's computer files, the prosecutors said, adding that "some items useful to the inquiry" were handed over voluntarily.

Kerviel's whereabouts were unknown, but his lawyer told AFP he was "not on the run." Neighbours said he had not been seen for weeks at the Neuilly flat, which some suggested he might have been sub-letting.
In an interview published Saturday in the daily Le Figaro, Societe Generale chairman Daniel Bouton denied that the bank's management had made any strategic errors which led to the scandal.
"What happened at Societe Generale is certainly not a disaster that resulted from our strategy. It is more like an accidental fire which destroys a large factory at an industrial plant," Bouton said.
He also rejected any suggestion that the bank had sought to hide the losses.
The French government on Friday demanded a full accounting of the scandal, which President Nicolas Sarkozy insisted had not affected the "solidity and reliability of France's financial system."

A top French presidential advisor revealed that Kerviel had held positions of more than 50 billion euros -- more than the bank's current market capitalisation of 35.9 billion euros.
"Questions will have to be asked about the internal controls of the banking systems," Raymond Soubie told French television, saying it was "amazing" the trader had not caught.
The head of the European Central Bank, Jean-Claude Trichet, called for tighter self-regulation by banks after the scandal.

Spiegel-Online, the website of German weekly Der Spiegel, said Kerviel negotiated 140,000 contracts "a few weeks ago" on the Eurex derivatives market, a Swiss affiliate of the German bourse.
With the DAX falling more than 600 points between the beginning of the year and January 18, Kievel would have probably lost some two billion euros (2.8 billion dollars), Spiegel-Online said, quoting experts.
It added that Societe Generale had been alerted to the enormous losses by German sources.
The scandal is a fresh blow to investor confidence as global banks reel from multi-billion dollar writedowns over the subprime crisis.
Bouton rejected as "absurd" US media suggestions that the trader may have helped push the US Federal Reserve into an unprecedented rate cut on Tuesday, deceived by Societe Generale's high-volume sales of tainted positions at the start of the week.
Described by work colleagues as a shy, hesitant character, Kerviel's resume depicts him as a judo and sailing fan who once ran for municipal office in his hometown of Pont l'Abbe in Brittany, western France.
His aunt, who lives in Pont-l'Abbe, told AFP that her nephew "must have been manipulated."
"They are an honest family, who have nothing to reproach themselves for. The young man has always been serious, reserved," Sylviane Le Goff said.
"In my opinion, it is his bosses and employers who should be looked into," she said, adding that her sister had gone to Paris on Thursday to try and "comfort" her son.
Many experts said it was difficult to believe a lone trader could have successfully hid such colossal losses.
Societe Generale announced at the same time as the fraud that it had lost about two billion dollars on its subprime exposure.
But the Bank of France governor said he was certain Societe Generale had not sought to disguise losses made in the subprime mortgage crisis.
I am sure in my opinion that more still is to be heard from this story, just keep in in touch.

US Market Week Wrap Up And It's Impact On The Currency Market

Traders were taken for a wild ride this week as markets were roiled by a series of dramatic events, starting with steep falls in European and Asian markets on Monday (US markets were closed for the Martin Luther King holiday), and a surprise 75 bps rate cut before the open on Tuesday followed by a precipitous drop and recovery later that day.

Wednesday brought revelations of the largest fraud on record, as French bank Societe Generale (GLE) admitted that a rogue trader had managed to evade oversight and lose over $7 billion. The week ended on a down note despite largely strong quarterly earnings from the tech sector, as renewed rumors about European subprime problems gave traders an excuse to take profits.

Overseas markets plummeted on Monday after President Bush failed to provide new details or reassurance on an expected economic stimulus plan. US stock futures were hit hard before Tuesday's open, but at 8:20 amET, the first emergency Fed rate cut in since 9-11 injected a modicum of confidence, allowing the US markets to close down only marginally that day.

Rumors of some form of bailout for bond insurers rallied the market midweek, as debate continued over whether these companies, which are emerging as critical pressure points in the overall subprime crisis, will survive or slide into bankruptcy. Press reports later confirmed rumors that Wilbur Ross was in discussions with Ambac for a possible takeover, and that NY State Insurance Superintendent Dianallo was tapped to lead the government's efforts to resolve the problems in the bond insurance industry.

The fraud at Societe Generale (GLE) captured headlines on Thursday morning, as the venerable French bank revealed how Jerome Kerviel hacked computer systems and lost $7 billion in a series of complex, concealed deals on European stock derivatives. There was some speculation that the fraud precipitated Monday's turbulence, as the bank's management unwound Kerviel's out-of-money trades, putting immense pressure on the futures market.

There was also some speculation that the fraud precipitated the Fed's surprise rate cut, though later in the week the Fed issued a statement noting it was not yet aware of the problems at SocGen at the time of its decision.Strong earnings from tech stocks Microsoft (MSFT), MEMC Electronic Materials (WFR), Broadcom (BRCM) and Juniper Networks (JNPR) capped off the week. MSFT's better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue were complimented by the company's prognosis of healthy demand from both businesses and consumers. Apple's (AAPL) quarterly report provided a less positive counterpoint to these tech wins, as Steve Jobs & Co. reported weaker iPod shipments than had been expected.

The generally strong earnings reports were not enough to prevent a sell off Friday afternoon, as stock traders took profits on rumors of subprime problems emerging at Fortis and ING, and a report that Wall Street paragon Goldman Sachs would trim its workforce by 5%. For the week, the DJIA and S&P 500 ended marginally higher, the Nasdaq composite was down fractionally over the four day week.

Societe Generale Unveils $7.2Bn Lone Trader Loss

French's second largest bank by market value has today uncovered a massive $7.2bn loss accumulated by a lone traders actions. The trader who has agreed to this is yet to be mentioned as at  release. The trader had basically opened trades beyond his limit got in trouble. This fraud was uncovered last week. As at release Societe Generale has it's shares suspended, with the bank Chief executive offering to step down but the Bank's Board has refused the move from It's Chief Executive, although supervisors were suspended on this move.

From a fax release the bank stated that it discovered this on Jan 19, although the crime was committed between 2007 & 2008, he took very high trading position, and as a middle employer he was able avert security. And is not clear when shares would start trading again.

Furthermore, the trader has had all his open positions closed.  The bank has also stated that he was aided by in-depth knowledge of control procedures.Though it is a big bank but it's a massive loss to take and they tend to seek re-capitilization to the tone of about $7bn.

All seems to be very untimely at a point where global slow doen seems to be on the lips of investors around the world, this would be a big blow for Societe Generale to take at this point.

WHAT ABOUT THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM IN DAVOS

What is the World Economic Forum?

The World Economic Forum is the foremost global community of business, intellectual, political and other society leaders who are committed to improving the world's state. The Forum is an independent, not-for-profit organization that brings these leaders together to work on projects that improve people’s lives.

What is the World Economic Forum's mission?

The Forum is “committed to improving the world's state” and it goes about achieving this through projects that addresses issues like HIV/AIDS treatment, water supply and fostering dialogue between Islam and the West. The summits give world leaders and members the opportunity to map out solutions to global challenges like terrorism and corporate citizenship. Developing insight on the most pressing issues also places the Forum in a unique position to mobilize people and resources to act.

Where is the World Economic Forum based?

The Forum’s headquarters are located on the outskirts of Geneva in a town called Cologny. Many people think that the Forum is based in Davos, where the Annual Meeting takes place, but there is only one office and that’s in Geneva.

How did the World Economic Forum begin?

In 1971, Professor Klaus Schwab, then a professor of Business Administration at the University of Geneva, gathered European business leaders in Davos, Switzerland, for a discussion on global management practices. The success of this first conference led Professor Schwab to create the European Management Forum, which in 1987 changed its name to the World Economic Forum.

How is the World Economic Forum governed?

The Forum is a non-profit foundation. It has three main governing bodies:

The Foundation Board

Which has overall responsibility for establishing the long term direction and objectives of the Forum, and which is comprised of international public and private sector leaders.

The International Business Council

Which acts as an advisory body providing intellectual stewardship to the Forum.

The Managing Board

Which is the in-house management team responsible for the executive oversight and management of the activities and resources of the Forum.

Is the World Economic Forum like the UN, IMF or World Bank?

The Forum shares the goal of these organizations which is to make our world a better place. While the Forum differs from the World Bank or the IMF it does not provide capital to nations in need. While the UN’s members are state governments, World Economic Forum comes mostly from the field of business. Members, in turn, meet leaders from other walks of life during Forum activities and events.

Does the World Economic Forum have any political affiliations?

The Forum is an independent and neutral organization that does not take political positions on the issues it addresses. Rather, the Forum gives leaders of opposing political beliefs a unique opportunity to discuss their differences and discover common ground.

Who are the World Economic Forum's members and partners?

Members represent the 1,000 leading companies and 200 smaller businesses - many from the developing world - that play a potent role in their industry or region. Members are influential, talented and powerful people. Many are also innovative and inspiring individuals who challenge conventional thinking and are committed to making the world a better place. It also works closely with communities of leaders from academia, government, religion, the media, non-governmental organizations and the arts.

Partners are select member companies who strongly support, contribute to and benefit from the World Economic Forum’s commitment to improving the state of the world. They are actively involved in the organization's activities and contribute their expertise and resources.

Why become a member of the World Economic Forum?

The Forum provides member companies, governments and institutions the opportunity to work together to address global challenges. This opportunity for partnership is based on the belief that no single group can tackle major issues on its own. Professor Klaus Schwab said: “We are living in times of enormous complexity and fragility in a truly interdependent world. Old recipes and traditional ways to deal with global challenges no longer suffice.” Cooperation at all levels will best meet the challenges facing our planet. Where else might you see a famous artist, political leader and religious leader having a discussion over coffee?

How is the World Economic Forum funded?

The Forum's funding comes from three sources:

Membership fees (CHF 42,500) from the 1,000 foremost companies who are the Forum's members and partners
Partnership fees from Strategic Partners (companies that play a leading role in the Forum) and from partners in the Forum's events
Participation fees for the Annual Meeting and for regional meetings and summits.

Does the World Economic Forum make a profit?

The Forum is a not-for-profit foundation. Its financial situation, like most organizations, changes from year to year. If any surplus exists from yearly operating costs, it is reinvested either to fund new initiatives and events or to expand existing ones. For more information about how our resources are used, read the Forum’s Annual Report.

Forum activities and events 

What does the World Economic Forum do?

The Forum draws together leaders in business, politics and society to address the issues affecting our world. Conferences like the Annual Meeting in Davos and regional summits are an occasion for leaders to outline major challenges and define strategies to address them.
The Global Institute for Partnership and Governance develops public-private partnerships that tackle some of these pressing problems like climate change and corruption. These initiatives draw on the experiences and strengths of many parties – business, NGOs, governments and institutions – to provide holistic solutions.
The Center for Strategic Insight works with the Forum’s networks and Communities (like business leaders, NGOs and policy makers). It creates strategic insight into emerging risks and developments that will shape the agendas of business and governments.

Where are the World Economic Forum's events and who goes?

Forum's events take place on almost every continent each year, and the Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, is the largest of these. International and regional leaders, Forum members from the international business community, governments and institutions attend these meetings.

Annual Meeting in Davos

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What is the Annual Meeting, who attends and why is it so important?

Business, religious, government, cultural and society leaders meet each year in Davos, Switzerland, for the Annual Meeting. The event provides a platform for these leaders to debate the difficult global challenges of our planet, identify emerging risks and ways to address them. It’s not surprising then that many initiatives have been created at the Annual Meeting – for example the Global Greenhouse Gas Register.
View this chart to see who attends the meeting.

Why is it held in Davos?

Since 1971, the scenic village of Davos has been the traditional site of the Annual Meeting. Holding the meeting in such a setting rather than a bustling metropolis allows attendees to focus more easily on the issues at hand.
The alpine location also means that local authorities are in a better position to implement the high level of security required for such an event.

More than 2,000 people attend the Annual Meeting, and so are Davos residents happy to host it?

An independent opinion survey showed that an overwhelming majority of Davos residents are in favour of hosting the Annual Meeting and are happy with the exposure it brings the town. The population actually voted to set aside part of the communal budget to support the Annual Meeting.

What about the protests at the Annual Meeting?

The Forum supports the rights of free speech and peaceful assembly, but opposes violence and destruction of property. In principle, the Forum is supportive of demonstrations by those who desire to have their voices heard. But the Forum condemns – vehemently and unequivocally – those who believe that violence is a legitimate form of public expression or debate. In answer to the protests, the Open Forum was launched to give everyone a voice in the globally focused debates at the Annual Meeting in Davos. On a year-round basis, you can also have your say about critical global issues on the Forum's weblog.

With all those famous people in one place, isn't security an issue?

The security of all staff and participants is taken very seriously. But despite the security measures, you’d be surprised by how freely participants walk around and interact with each other. And that really gets to the heart of the success of Davos, because there is a basic philosophy that everyone is equal which really allows just about anyone to approach anyone else.

Can the public take part?

The general public cannot take part directly in the Annual Meeting for reasons of security and space. But the Forum and civil society organizations - including church, non-governmental and non-profit organizations - co-organize the Open Forum. These are discussions open to the general public, free-of-charge and held simultaneously with the Annual Meeting in Davos.

Are events behind closed doors, or are they covered by the media?

Many global and local media organizations produce special coverage of Forum events. In fact, nearly one in every five participants at the Annual Meeting hails from the media sector.
The Forum’s weblog provides even greater access to sessions, and it is a virtual forum where people unable to attend the meetings can have their say too.

Global Competitiveness Programme

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What kind of economic research does the Forum do?

Economic research at the Forum -- led by the Global Competitiveness Programme (GCP) -- focuses on identifying the impediments to growth so that strategies to achieve sustainable economic progress can be developed – strategies that reduce poverty and increase prosperity.
The Forum’s competitiveness reports range from global coverage, such as The Global Competitiveness Report, to regional and topical coverage, such as the Africa Competitiveness Report, The Lisbon Review and the Global Information Technology Report.

Who is the GCP, and what other organizations are involved?

The GCP team of economic researchers is headed by the forum's chief economist, Augusto Lopez-Claros. Much of the data used in the competitiveness reports is obtained through a global network of 104 partner institutes and in collaboration with leading academics.

How can I get copies of the Global Competitiveness Report?

GCP reports are available in print and results of the Executive Opinion Survey are available on CD-ROM. For purchasing information, please go to www.weforum.org/onlinepurchases.

Communities

A key part of the Forum’s activities is the creation of distinctive communities of member and partner companies, creating smaller, more informal opportunities for interaction. Forum communities include the Young Global Leaders and the Technology Pioneers which are active year-round as well as other communities which mainly contribute to the forum's Annual Meeting.

These communities:

Provide timely information and scientific judgement;
expand and strengthen the representation of society at large in forum activities to improve interaction between business, government and other sectors of society;

Share their views as active participants in regional meetings and summits and the Annual Meeting as well as task forces and initiatives;

Discuss ways of building a genuine culture of dialogue, searching out common values to bridge divides among communities;

Enhance the quality of the Forum's activities.

Members and Partners

Our members represent the world’s 1,000 leading companies. Partners are select member companies who are actively involved in the organization's activities and contribute their expertise and resources.

Membership

Members comprise in principle the foremost 1,000 global enterprises. Characteristics of Members include:

· Their rank among the top companies within their industry and/or country
· The global dimension of their activities
· A leading role in shaping the future of their industry and/or region

For more information on Membership, including application for Membership status, please contact:

Grant McKibbin
Tel: +41 22 869 1258
Email: grant.mckibbin@weforum.org

Partnership

Every year, more than 100 of the world’s most influential companies partner with the World Economic Forum to tackle the most complex challenges facing humanity.
Recognizing that each company’s business needs are unique, the Forum offers the possibility for partners to engage in a specific community, project or event.
We invite you to discuss with us how we can tailor a specific package to meet your objectives.

Please contact the forum at:

Tel: +41 22 869 1212
Email: partnership@weforum.org

U.S. RECESSION AND THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

For two days now half of the world's biggest stock indexes fell into a bearish trend as concerns about a U.S. recession dragged down banking and retail shares across Asia, Europe and Latin America. But today the Hong Kong stock indexex just rebounded.The Fed lowered its benchmark interest rate in an emergency move for the first time since 2001, after these stock markets tumbled from Hong Kong to London and the U.S. the US economy showed increasing signs that it's headed into a recession.

The Central Bank had to cut the target overnight rate to 3.5 basis point from 4.25 percent, FOMC in it's statement in Washington made this known. There was no sheduled gathering till next week, this is the biggest single reduction since the Fed began using rate as a vital instrument of monetary policy around 1990. Traders had anticipated 75 basis points of rate cuts this month, according to futures prices on the Chicago Board of Trade. The FOMC vote was 8-1, with St. Louis Fed President William Poole preferring to wait until the regularly scheduled meeting. Fed Governor Frederic Mishkin was absent and not voting. Fed officials met by video conference at about 6 p.m. yesterday, spokeswoman Michelle Smith said. Mishkin was traveling and unable to participate, she said. The voting members were the same as in 2007 because the presidents don't rotate in until the first regular meeting, Smith said. The Fed has also disclosed that "Broader financial market conditions have continued to deteriorate and credit has tightened further for some businesses and household," while FOMC took the initiative "in view of a weaking of the economic outlook and increasing downside risks to growth.'' the Fed said in a statement in Washington.

Fed chairman Ben Bernanke is aiming to shore up confidence with this move. One analyst said the Fed was "obviously panicked" by the threat of recession. "Unfortunately they have no power to reverse what in my opinion is the worst post-war recession," said Michael Metz, chief investment strategist at Oppenheimer in New York. ``The bottom line was that financial conditions were tightening sharply'' and affecting the economic outlook, said former Fed economist Brian Sack, who is now with Macroeconomic Advisers LLC in Washington. ``The view so far has been that they're somewhat behind the curve and needed to adopt a somewhat more
aggressive approach.'' The Fed Board of Governors, in a related move, lowered the so-called discount rate on direct loans to commercial banks by a 0.75 percentage point to 4 percent.

Bernanke told legislators at the House Budget Committee that banks were trying to protect asset quality and funding, and tightening credit conditions for the rest of the economy as a result. ``Banks have also evidently become more restrictive in their lending to firms and households,'' he said. The sharp downturn in the US economy has centred on the slump in the American housing market over the past year. Against a backdrop of higher US mortgage rates, home loan defaults and repossessions hit record levels last year, specifically in the sub-prime sector. This industry specialises in higher risk loans to people on low incomes or those with poor credit histories. As the sub-prime mortgage sector hit crisis point, it triggered record losses at some of America's largest banks. It also caused the global credit squeeze, as much of this sub-prime debt was repackaged into wider debt offerings that were bought by banks and other investors around the world. As a result, global banks are now much less willing to lend to each other, or to homes and businesses, until the full extent of the sub-prime exposure is known.

The Bank of Canada, in a scheduled meeting, lowered its main interest rate by a quarter point today to 4 percent and signaled it will act again to shield Canada from the U.S. slowdown. The Bank of England said it has no plans to change the date of its next rate decision. The bank's policy makers are due to begin a two-day meeting in London on Feb. 7.

Although the Davos Meeting starts officially tomorrow, there is presumeable going to be alot of debate about a Slow down Vs Recession and whether a global economic slow down is around the corner or not would be an issue for discussion when the meeting starts in ernest. Policy makers set aside concerns about inflation to lower borrowing costs for the fourth time since September after the unemployment rate hit a two-year high and stocks slumped. Chairman Ben S. Bernanke shifted the Fed's stance to a more- aggressive approach in remarks this month citing a need for ``decisive and timely'' action. Asia rebounds on U.S. Fed rate cut.

The dollar fell and Treasury securities rallied after the announcement. Stocks slumped as some investors questioned whether the Fed would be able to avert a recession, and then recouped more than half the losses. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 1.5 percent to 1,304.96 at 10:30 a.m. in New York, after dropping as much as 3.8 percent earlier.

GLOSSARY OF FOREX/FINANCIAL TERMS

A

AAccrual: The apportionment of premiums and discounts on forward exchange transactions that relate directly to deposit swap (Interest Arbitrage) deals, over the period of each deal.
Actualize: The underlying assets or instruments which are traded in the cash market.
Adjustable Peg: Term for an exchange rate regime where a country's exchange rate is "pegged" (i.e. fixed) in relation to another currency, often the dollar or French Franc, but where the rate may be changed from time to time. This was the basis of the Bretton Woods system. See peg, and crawling peg.
Adjustment: Official action normally by either change in the internal economic policies to correct a payment imbalance or in the official currency rate or.
Agent Bank: (1) A bank acting for a foreign bank. (2) In the Euro market - the agent bank is the one appointed by the other banks in the syndicate to handle the administration of the loan.
Aggregate Demand: Total demand for goods and services in the economy. It includes private and public sector demand for goods and services within the country and the demand of consumers and and firms in other countries for good and services.
Aggregate Risk: Size of exposure of a bank to a single customer for both spot and forward contracts.Aggregate Supply: Total supply of goods and services in the economy from domestic sources (including imports) available to meet aggregate demand.
Agio: Difference in the value between currencies. Also used to describe percentage charges for conversion from paper money into cash, or from a weak into a strong currency.
Appreciation: Describes a currency strengthening in response to market demand rather than by official action.
Arbitrage: The simultaneous purchase and sale on different markets, of the same or equivalent financial instruments to profit from price or currency differentials. The exchange rate differential or Swap points. May be derived from Deposit Rate differentials.
Arbitrage Channel: The range of prices within which there will be no possibility to arbitrage between the cash and futures market.Around: Used in quoting forward "premium / discount". "Five-five around" would mean five point on either side of the present spot value.Asset Allocation: Dividing instrument funds among markets to achieve diversification or maximum return.Ask: The price at which the currency or instrument is offered.Asset: In the context of foreign exchange is the right to receive from a counterparty an amount of currency either in respect of a balance sheet asset (e.g. a loan) or at a specified future date in respect of an unmatched forward or spot deal.
At Best: An instruction given to a dealer to buy or sell at the best rate that can be obtained.
At or Better: An order to deal at a specific rate or better.
Authorized Dealer: A financial institution or bank authorized to deal in foreign exchange.

B

Back Office: This is settlement and related processes.
Backwardation: Term referring to the amount that the spot price exceeds the forward price.
Balance of Payments: A systematic record of the economic transactions during a given period for a country. (1) The term is often used to mean either: (i) balance of payments on "current account"; or (ii) the current account plus certain long term capital movements. (2) The combination of the trade balance, current balance, capital account and invisible balance, which together make up the balance of payments total. Prolonged balance of payment deficits tend to lead to restrictions in capital transfers, and or decline in currency values.
Band: The range in which a currency is permitted to move. A system used in the ERM.
Bank Line: This means line of credit granted by a bank to a customer, also known as a "line".
Bank Rate: The rate at which a central bank is prepared to lend money to its domestic banking system.
Base Currency: This implies currency in which the operating results of the bank or institution are reported.
Basis: The difference between the cash price and futures price.Basis Point: One per cent of one per cent.
Basis Trading: Taking opposite positions in the cash and futures market with the intention of profiting from favourable movements in the basis.
Basket: A group of currencies normally used to manage the exchange rate of a currency. It is sometimes referred to as a unit of account.
Bear Market: A prolonged period of generally falling prices.
Bear: An investor who believes that prices are going to fall.
Bid: The price at which a buyer has offered to purchase the currency or instrument.
Book: The summary of currency positions held by a dealer, desk, or room, also total of the assets and liabilities. If the average maturity of the book is less than that of the assets, the bank is said to be running a short and open book. Passing the Book refers normally to transferring the trading of the Banks positions to another office at the close of the day, e.g. from London to New York.
Bretton Woods: The site of the conference which in 1944 led to the establishment of the post war foreign exchange system that remained intact until the early 1970s. The conference resulted in the formation of the IMF. The system fixed currencies in a fixed exchange rate system with 1% fluctuations of the currency to gold or the dollar.
Broker: An agent, who executes orders to buy and sell currencies and related instruments either for a commission or on a spread. Brokers are agents working on commission and not principals or agents acting on their own account. In the foreign exchange market brokers tend to act as intermediaries between banks bringing buyers and sellers together for a commission paid by the initiator or by both parties. There are four or five major global brokers operating through subsidiaries affiliates and partners in many countries.
Bull Market: A prolonged period of generally rising prices.
Bull: An investor who believes that prices are going to rise.
Bundesbank: Central Bank of Germany.
Buying Rate: Rate at which the market and a market maker in particular is willing to buy the currency. Sometimes called bid rate.

C

Cable: A term used in the foreign exchange market for the US Dollar / British Pound rate.
Capital Risk: The risk arising from a bank having to pay to the counter party with out knowing whether the other party will or is able to meet its side of the bargain. see Herstatt.
Carry: The interest cost of financing securities or other financial instruments held.
Cash Delivery: Same day settlement.
Cash Market: The market in the actual financial instrument on which a futures or options contract is based.
Cash: Cash normally refers to an exchange transaction contracted for settlement on the day the deal is struck. This term is mainly used in the North American markets and those countries which rely for foreign exchange services on these markets because of time zone preference i.e. Latin America. In Europe and Asia, cash transactions are often referred to as value same day deals.
Cash and Carry: The buying of an asset today and selling a future contract on the asset. A reverse cash and carry is possible by selling an asset and buying a future.
Cash Settlement: A procedure for settling futures contract where the cash difference between the future and the market price is paid instead of physical delivery.
Central Bank: A bank which is responsible for controlling a countries monetary policy. It is normally the issuing bank and controls bank licensing, and any foreign exchange control regime.
Central Rate: Exchange rates against the ECU adopted for each currency within the EMS. Currencies have limited movement from the central rate according to the relevant band.
Chartist: An individual who studies graphs and charts of historic data to find trends and predict trend reversals which include the observance of certain patterns and characteristics of the charts to derive resistance levels, head and shoulders patterns, and double bottom or double top patterns which are thought to indicate trend reversals.
Clean Float: An exchange rate that is not materially effected by official intervention.
Closed Position: A transaction which leaves the trade with a zero net commitment to the market with respect to a particular currency.
Commission: The fee that a broker may charge clients for dealing on their behalf.
Confirmation: A memorandum to the other party describing all the relevant details of the transaction.
Contract: An agreement to buy or sell a specified amount of a particular currency or option for a specified month in the future (See Futures contract).
Conversion Account: A general ledger account representing the uncovered position in a particular currency. Such accounts are referred to as Position Accounts.
Conversion: The process by which an asset or liability denominated in one currency is exchanged for an asset or liability denominated in another currency.
Conversion Arbitrage: A transaction where the asset is purchased and buys a put option and sells a call option on the asset purchased, each option having the same exercise price and expiry.
Convertible Currency: A currency that can be freely exchanged for another currency (and or gold) without special authorization from the central bank.
Copey: Slang for the Danish krone.
Correspondent Bank: The foreign banks representative who regularly performs services for a bank which has no branch in the relevant centre, e.g. to facilitate the transfer of funds. In the US this often occurs domestically due to inter state banking restrictions.
Counterparty: The other organisation or party with whom the exchange deal is being transacted.Countervalue: Where a person buys a currency against the dollar it is the dollar value of the transaction.
Country Risk: The risk attached to a borrower by virtue of its location in a particular country. This involves examination of economic, political and geographical factors. Various organisations generate country risk tables.
Cover: (1) To take out a forward foreign exchange contract. (2) To close out a short position by buying currency or securities which have been sold.
Covered Arbitrage: Arbitrage between financial instruments denominated in different currencies, using forward cover to eliminate exchange risk.
Covered Margin: The interest rate margin between two instruments denominated in different currencies after taking account of the cost of forward cover.
Crawling Peg: A method of exchange rate adjustment; the rate is fixed / pegged, but adjusted at certain intervals in line with certain economic or market indicators.
Credit Risk: The risk that a debtor will not repay; more specifically the risk that the counterparty does not have the currency promised to be delivered.
Cross Deal: A foreign exchange deal entered into involving two currencies, neither of which is the base currency.
Cross Rates: Rates between two currencies, neither of which is the US Dollar.
Current Account: The net balance of a country's international payment arising from exports and imports together with unilateral transfers such as aid and migrant remittances. It excludes capital flows.

D

Day Trader: Speculators who take positions in commodities which are then liquidated prior to the close of the same trading day.
Deal Date: The date on which a transaction is agreed upon.
Deal Ticket: The primary method of recording the basic information relating to a transaction.
Dealer: An individual or firm acting as a principal, rather than as an agent, in the purchase and / or sale of securities.
Dealers trade for their own account and risk.
Deflator: Difference between real and nominal Gross National Product, which is equivalent to the overall inflation rate.
Delivery Date: The date of maturity of the contract, when the exchange of the currencies is made This date is more commonly known as the value date in the FX or Money markets.
Delivery Risk: A term to describe when a counterparty will not be able to complete his side of the deal, although willing to do so.
Depreciation: A fall in the value of a currency due to market forces rather than due to official action.Desk: Term referring to a group dealing with a specific currency or currencies.
Details: All the information required to finalize a foreign exchange transaction, i.e. name, rate, dates, and point of delivery.
Devaluation: Deliberate downward adjustment of a currency against its fixed parities or bands, normally by formal announcement.
Direct Quotation: Quoting in fixed units of foreign currency against variable amounts of the domestic currency.
Dirty Float: Floating a currency when the rate is controlled by intervention by the monetary authorities.

E

Easing: Modest decline in price.
Economic Indicator: A statistics which indicates current economic growth rates and trends such as retail sales and employment.
ECU: European Currency Unit.
EDI: Electronic Data Interchange.
Effective Exchange Rate: An attempt to summarize the effects on a country's trade balance of its currency's changes against other currencies.
EFT: Electronic Fund Transfer.
EMS: European Monetary System.
European Monetary System: A system designed to stabilize if not eliminate exchange risk between member states of the EMS as part of the economic convergence policy of the EU. It permits currencies to move in a measured fashion (divergence indicator) within agreed bands (the parity grid) with respect to the ECU and consequently with each other.
Exchange Control: A system of controlling inflows and out flows of foreign exchange, devices include licensing multiple currencies, quotas, auctions, limits, levies and surcharges.
Exotic: A less broadly traded currency.
Exposure: (i) Net working capital - The current assets in a foreign currency minus current liabilities in the currency; (ii) Net financial method The current assets in a foreign currency minus current liabilities and long term debt in the currency; (iii) Monetary / non-monetary method - Monetary assets and liabilities in the foreign currency are valued at present exchange rates, while non-monetary items are entered at the relevant historic rates.

F

Fast Market: Rapid movement in a market caused by strong interest by buyers and / or sellers. In such circumstances price levels may be omitted and bid and offer quotations may occur too rapidly to be fully reported.
Fed Fund Rate: The interest rate on Fed funds. This is a closely watched short term interest rate as it signals the Feds view as to the state of the money supply.
Fed: The United States Federal Reserve. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Membership is compulsory for Federal Reserve members. The corporation had deep involvement in the Savings and Loans crisis of the late 80s.Federal Reserve System: The central banking system of the US comprising 12 Federal Reserve Banks controlling 12 districts under the Federal Reserve Board. Membership of the Fed is compulsory for banks chartered by the Comptroller of Currency and optional for state chartered banks.
Fill or Kill: An order which must be entered for trading, normally in a pit three times, if not filled is immediately canceled.
Fisher Effect: The relationship that exists between interest rates and exchange rate movements, so that in an ideal situation interest rate differentials would be exactly off set by exchange rate movements. See interest rate parity.
Fixed Exchange Rate: Official rate set by monetary authorities. Often the fixed exchange rate permits fluctuation within a band.
Flexible Exchange Rate: Exchange rates with a fixed parity against one or more currencies with frequent revaluation's. A form of managed float.
Floating Exchange Rate: An exchange rate where the value is determined by market forces. Even floating currencies are subject to intervention by the monetary authorities. When such activity is frequent the float is known as a dirty float.
FOMC: Federal Open Market Committee, the committee that sets money supply targets in the US which tend to be implemented through Fed Fund interest rates etc.Foreign Exchange: The purchase or sale of a currency against sale or purchase of another.
Forex: Foreign Exchange.
Forex Club: Groups formed in the major financial centers to encourage educational and social contacts between foreign exchange dealers, under the umbrella of Association Cambiste International.
Forward Margins: Discounts or premiums between spot rate and the forward rate for a currency. Normally quoted in points.
Forward Operations: Foreign exchange transactions, on which the fulfilment of the mutual delivery obligations is made on a date later than the second business day after the transaction was concluded.
Forward Outright: A commitment to buy or sell a currency for delivery on a specified future date or period. The price is quoted as the Spot rate minus or plus the forward points for the chosen period.
Forward Rate: Forward rates are quoted in terms of forward points, which represents the difference between the forward and spot rates. In order to obtain the forward rate from the actual exchange rate the forward points are either added or subtracted from the exchange rate. The decision to subtract or add points is determined by the differential between the deposit rates for both currencies concerned in the transaction. The base currency with the higher interest rate is said to be at a discount to the lower interest rate quoted currency in the forward market. Therefor the forward points are subtracted from the spot rate. Similarly, the lower interest rate base currency is said to be at a premium, and the forward points are added to the spot rate to obtain the forward rate.
Free Reserves: Total reserves held by a bank less the reserves required by the authority.Front Office: The activities carried out by the dealer, normal trading activities.
Fundamentals: The macro economic factors that are accepted as forming the foundation for the relative value of a currency, these include inflation, growth, trade balance, government deficit, and interest rates.
FX: Foreign Exchange.

G

G7: The seven leading industrial countries, being US, Germany, Japan, France, UK, Canada, Italy.
G10: G7 plus Belgium, Netherlands and Sweden, a group associated with IMF discussions. Switzerland is sometimes peripherally involved.
Gap: A mismatch between maturities and cash flows in a bank or individual dealers position book. Gap exposure is effectively interest rate exposure.
Going Long: The purchase of a stock, commodity, or currency for investment or speculation.Going Short: The selling of a currency or instrument not owned by the seller.
Gold Standard: The original system for supporting the value of currency issued. The was that where the price of gold is fixed against the currency it means that the increased supply of gold does not lower the price of gold but causes prices to increase.
Good Until Canceled: An instruction to a broker that unlike normal practice the order does not expire at the end of the trading day, although normally terminates at the end of the trading month.
Grid: Fixed margin within which exchange rates are allowed to fluctuate.
Gross Domestic Product: Total value of a country's output, income or expenditure produced within the country's physical borders.
Gross National Product: Gross domestic product plus "factor income from abroad" - income earned from investment or work abroad.

H

Hard Currency: A currency whose value is expected to remain stable or increase in terms of other currencies.
Head and Shoulders: A pattern in price trends which chartist consider indicates a price trend reversal. The price has risen for some time, at the peak of the left shoulder, profit taking has caused the price to drop or level. The price then rises steeply again to the head before more profit taking causes the the price to drop to around the same level as the shoulder. A further modest rise or level will indicate a that a further major fall is imminent. The breach of the neckline is the indication to sell.
Hedge: The purchase or sale of options or futures contracts as a temporary substitute for a transaction to be made at a later date. Usually it involves opposite positions in the cash or futures or options market.
Hit the Bid: Acceptance of purchasing at the offer or selling at the bid.

I

IMF: International Monetary Fund, established in 1946 to provide international liquidity on a short and medium term and encourage liberalization of exchange rates. The IMF supports countries with balance of payments problems with the provision of loans.
IMM: International Monetary Market part of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange that lists a number of currency and financial futures Implied volatility A measurement of the market's expected price range of the underlying currency futures based on the traded option premiums.
Implied Rates: The interest rate determined by calculating the difference between spot and forward rates.
Indicative Quote: A market-maker's price which is not firm.
Inflation: Continued rise in the general price level in conjunction with a related drop in purchasing power. Sometimes referred to as an excessive movement in such price levels.
Initial Margin: The margin required by a Foreign Exchange firm to initiate the buying or selling of a determined amount of currency.
Inter-Bank Rates: The bid and offer rates at which international banks place deposits with each other. The basis of the Interbank market.
Interest Arbitrage: Switching into another currency by buying spot and selling forward, and investing proceeds in order to obtain a higher interest yield. Interest arbitrage can be inward, i.e. from foreign currency into the local one or outward, i.e. from the local currency to the foreign one. Sometimes better results can be obtained by not selling the forward interest amount. In that case some treat it as no longer being a complete arbitrage, as if the exchange rate moved against the arbitrageur, the profit on the transaction may create a loss.
Interest Parity: One currency is in interest parity with another when the difference in the interest rates is equalized by the forward exchange margins. For instance, if the operative interest rate in Japan is 3% and in the UK 6%, a forward premium of 3% for the Japanese Yen against sterling would bring about interest parity.
Interest Rate Swaps: An agreement to swap interest rate exposures from floating to fixed or vice versa. There is no swap of the principal. It is the interest cash flows be they payments or receipts that are exchanged.
Internationalization: Referring to a currency that is widely used to denominate trade and credit transactions by non residents of the country of issue. US dollar and Swiss Franc are examples.
Intervention: Action by a central bank to effect the value of its currency by entering the market. Concerted intervention refers to action by a number of central banks to control exchange rates.

K

Kiwi: Slang for the New Zealand dollar.

L

Leading Indicators: Statistic that are considered to precede changes in economic growth rates and total business activity, e.g. factory orders.

Liability: In terms of foreign exchange, the obligation to deliver to a counterparty an amount of currency either in respect of a balance sheet holding at a specified future date or in respect of an un-matured forward or spot transaction.
Limit Order: An order to buy or sell a specified amount of a currency at a specified price or better.Liquidation: Any transaction that offsets or closes out a previously established position.Liquidity: The ability of a market to accept large transactions.

M

Maintenance Margin: The minimum margin which an investor must keep on deposit in a margin account at all times in respect of each open contract.
Make a Market: A dealer is said to make a market when he or she quotes bid and offer prices at which he or she stands ready to buy and sell.
Managed Float: When the monetary authorities intervene regularly in the market to stabilize the rates or to aim the exchange rate in a required direction.
Margin Call: A demand for additional funds to be deposited in a margin account to meet margin requirements because of adverse future price movements.
Margin: For currencies a deposit made to the forex firm on establishing a futures position account.Mark to Market: The daily adjustment of an account to reflect accrued profits and losses often required to calculate variations of margins.
Market Maker: A market maker is a person or firm authorized to create and maintain a market in an instrument.
Market Order: An order to buy or sell a financial instrument immediately at the best possible price.
Micro Economics: The study of economic activity as it applies to individual firms or well defined small groups of individuals or economic sectors.
Mid-Price or Middle Rate: The price half-way between the two prices, or the average of both buying and selling prices offered by the market makers.
Minimum Price Fluctuation: The smallest increment of market price movement possible in a given futures contract.
Monetary Base: Currency in circulation plus banks' required and excess deposits at the central bank.Moving Average: A way of smoothing a set of data, widely used in price time series.

N

Net Position: The amount of currency bought or sold which have not yet been offset by opposite transactions.

O

Odd Lot: A non standard amount for a transaction.
Offer: The price at which a seller is willing to sell. The best offer is the lowest such price available.
Offset: The closing-out or liquidation of a futures position.Off-shore: The operations of a financial institution which although physically located in a country, has little connection with that country's financial systems. In certain countries a bank is not permitted to do business in the domestic market but only with other foreign banks. This is known as an off shore banking unit.
Overnight Limit: Net long or short position in one or more currencies that a dealer can carry over into the next dealing day. Passing the book to other bank dealing rooms in the next trading time zone reduces the need for dealers to maintain these unmonitored exposures.
Overnight: A deal from today until the next business day.

P

Parity: (1) Foreign exchange dealer's slang for your price is the correct market price. (2) Official rates in terms of SDR or other pegging currency.
Parities: The value of one currency in terms of another.
Pegged: A system where a currency moves in line with another currency, some pegs are strict while others have bands of movement.
Pip: Minimum fluctuation or smallest increment of price movement.
Position: The netted total commitments in a given currency. A position can be either flat or square (no exposure), long, (more currency bought than sold), or short (more currency sold than bought).
Profit Taking: The unwinding of a position to realize profits.

Q

Quote: An indicative price. The price quoted for information purposes but not to deal.

R

Rally: A recovery in price after a period of decline.Range: The difference between the highest and lowest price of a future recorded during a given trading session.Rate: (1) The price of one currency in terms of another, normally against USD. (2) Assessment of the credit worthiness of an institution.
Reaction: A decline in prices following an advance.
Reciprocal Currency: A currency that is normally quoted as dollars per unit of currency rather than the normal quote method of units of currency per dollar. Sterling is the most common example.
Resistance Point or Level: A price recognized by technical analysts as a price which is likely to result in a rebound but if broken through is likely to result in a significant price movement.
Revaluation: Increase in the exchange rate of a currency as a result of official action.
Revaluation Rate: The rate for any period or currency which is used to revalue a position or book.
Risk Management: The identification and acceptance or offsetting of the risks threatening the profitability or existence of an organisation. With respect to foreign exchange involves among others consideration of market, sovereign, country, transfer, delivery, credit, and counterparty risk.
Risk Position: An asset or liability, which is exposed to fluctuations in value through changes in exchange rates or interest rates.
Rollover: An overnight swap, specifically the next business day against the following business day (also called Tomorrow Next, abbreviated to Tom-Next).Round Trip: Buying and selling of a specified amount of currency.

S

Same Day Transaction: A transaction that matures on the day the transaction takes place.
Selling Rate: Rate at which a bank is willing to sell foreign currency.
Settlement Date: The date by which an executed order must be settled by the transference of instruments or currencies and funds between buyer and seller.
Settlement Risk: Risk associated with the non settlement of the transaction by the counter party.
Short Sale: The sale of a specified amount of currency not owned by the seller at the time of the trade. Short sales are usually made in expectation of a decline in the price.
Short-term Interest Rates: Normally the 90 day rate.
Sidelined: A major currency that is lightly traded due to major market interest being in another currency pair.
Soft Market: More potential sellers than buyers, which creates an environment where rapid price falls are likely.
Spot: (1) The most common foreign exchange transaction. (2) Spot or Spot date refers to the spot transaction value date that requires settlement within two business days, subject to value date calculation.
Spot Next: The overnight swap from the spot date to the next business day.Spot Price / Rate: The price at which the currency is currently trading in the spot market.
Spread: (1) The difference between the bid and ask price of a currency. (2) The difference between the price of two related futures contracts.
Square: Purchase and sales are in balance and thus the dealer has no open position.
Squawk Box: A speaker connected to a phone often used in broker trading desks.
Squeeze: Action by a central bank to reduce supply in order to increase the price of money.
Stable Market: An active market which can absorb large sale or purchases of currency without major moves.
Standard: A term referring to certain normal amounts and maturities for dealing.
Sterilization: Central Bank activity in the domestic money market to reduce the impact on money supply of its intervention activities in the FX market.
Sterling: British pound, otherwise known as cable.Stocky: Market slang for Swedish Krona.
Stop Loss Order: Order given to ensure that, should a currency weaken by a certain percentage, a short position will be covered even though this involves taking a loss. Realize profit orders are less common.
Support Levels: When an exchange rate depreciates or appreciates to a level where (1) Technical analysis techniques suggest that the currency will rebound, or not go below; (2) the monetary authorities intervene to stop any further down ward movement.
See resistance point.
Swap Price: A price as a differential between two dates of the swap.
Swap: The simultaneous purchase and sale of the same amount of a given currency for two different dates, against the sale and purchase of another. A swap can be a swap against a forward. In essence, swapping is somewhat similar to borrowing one currency and lending another for the same period. However, any rate of return or cost of funds is expressed in the price differential between the two sides of the transaction.
Swissy: Market slang for Swiss Franc.

T

Technical Correction: An adjustment to price not based on market sentiment but technical factors such as volume and charting.
Thin Market: A market in which trading volume is low and in which consequently bid and ask quotes are wide and the liquidity of the instrument traded is low.Thursday / Friday Dollars: A US foreign exchange technicality. If a foreign bank buys dollars on Tuesday for Thursday delivery. If the bank leaves the funds overnight and transfers them on Friday by means of a clearing house cheque then clearance is not until Monday, the next working day. Higher interest rates for this period are thus available.
Tick: A minimum change in price, up or down.
Today / Tomorrow: Simultaneous buying of a currency for delivery the following day and selling for the spot day, or vice versa. Also referred to as overnight.
Tomorrow Next (Tom Next): Simultaneous buying of a currency for delivery the following day and selling for the spot day or vice versa.Trade Date: The date on which a trade occurs.
Tradeable Amount: Smallest transaction size acceptable.
Transaction Date: The date on which a trade occurs.
Transaction: The buying or selling of currencies resulting from the execution of an order.
Two Tier Market: A dual exchange rate system where normally only one rate is open to market pressure, e.g. South Africa.
Two-Way Quotation: When a dealer quotes both buying and selling rates for foreign exchange transactions.

U

Uncovered: Another term for an open position.
Under-Valuation: An exchange rate is normally considered to be undervalued when it is below its purchasing power parity.
Up Tick: A transaction executed at a price greater than the previous transaction.

V

Value Date: For a spot transaction it is two business banking days forward in the country of the bank providing quotations which determine the spot value date. The only exception to this general rule is the spot day in the quoting centre coinciding with a banking holiday in the country(ies) of the foreign currency(ies). The value date then moves forward a day.Value Spot: Normally settlement for two working days from today. See value date.
Volatility: A measure of the amount by which an asset price is expected to fluctuate over a given period.
Vostro Account: A local currency account maintained with a bank by another bank. The term is normally applied to the counterparty's account from which funds may be paid into or withdrawn, as a result of a transaction.

W

Wash Trade: A matched deal which produces neither a gain nor a loss.
Whipsaw: Term for where a trader takes a position, then has to move against it triggering stop loss limits and liquidation of positions, then having to move in the original direction. Normally occurs in volatile markets.
Working Day: A day on which the banks in a currency's principal financial centre are open for business. For FX transactions, a working day only occurs if the bank in both financial centre's are open for business (all relevant currency centers in the case of a cross are open).