ECB official says banks' progress on forex 'fixing' reforms is slow
By Patrick Graham
LONDON (Reuters) - Banks are only slowly making progress on changes recommended by regulators in how they deal with foreign exchange "fixing" orders, a key part of a global investigation into market manipulation, according to one European Central Bank official.
Guy-Charles Marhic, secretary of the ECB's foreign exchange market contact group, said that banks were talking to the ECB about implementing steps to improve the operation of currency benchmarks recommended last year by the Financial Stability Board (FSB) - the G20's regulatory arm.
Some formal steps, such as the widening of the fixing window used by the organiser, the WM Company, for setting the main London benchmarks, have been carried out, and banks are working on other moves, Marhic said. But relatively few banks had fully implemented the proposals, he said.
Work was continuing, Marhic said, but if the recommendations are not implemented, the likelihood of a regulatory response will increase.
"We need a bit more time to get the broader assessment. But it is clear that smaller banks have some difficulties to implement the recommendations (of the FSB)," Marhic said. "Some smaller banks are saying that they want to stop providing fixings at least for some clients."
The FSB has provided a forum for regulators to coordinate reform since the 2008 financial crisis, but the conduct of supervision remains up to regional bodies in each jurisdiction. The ECB took over the supervision of euro zone banks last year and also watches over the lightly regulated currency markets through its market contact group.
The FSB's proposals included a suggestion that banks charge more for fixing orders, a thorny issue for a market which has used fixing services as a loss-leader to secure the business of big fund clients.
The FSB also said banks should create a sort of isolation room to deal with fixing orders, away from spot dealing desks, to reduce the chances dealers will use information about orders to inform other trading by the bank.
Bankers involved with providing the service told Reuters last year that smaller banks would be likely either to refuse to accept orders or pass them on to larger lenders, given the additional cost and risks implied by the FSB recommendations.
Beyond that, banks have refused to be drawn publicly on the implications of the FSB recommendations for business relationships with the large fund investors who make the most use of the daily fixings.
(Editing by Larry King)
