gnuTrade's Features
Trading on price movements
Game-like trading screen with colourful graphics and sounds to enhance the trading experience
Free access to live prices of the world's major stock indices, global currencies, popular commodities and bonds
Unlimited play-money account to help learn or practice trading
Clear, jargon-free trading guides to help you learn about financial markets and how to use the gnuTrade system
Low bet amounts and minimum deposit of £20, €30 or $30 for real money trading
Unique 'per point', 'basic' and 'back a player' bets
Ways to profit whether markets go up or down
Special tradePeak feature gives you instant insight into how other players are trading
Automatic 'stop loss' feature to help limit risk
Live chat help desk
Trading forums and chat rooms to exchange opinions and ideas with other members
News section with regular updates on world news stories of the day
Option to create weekly or daily graphs of each market's performance
No commissions or stamp duty to pay
No brokers or transaction fees
Tax-free profits (if you are not a UK resident, you may be subject to taxes in your country of residence.)
Free, advanced software - no downloads
Quick, secure payout and deposit methods
Showing posts with label bond trading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bond trading. Show all posts
Saturday, 6 September 2008
Thursday, 8 May 2008
MarketAxess Results
MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX) , the operator of a leading electronic trading platform for U.S. and European high-grade corporate bonds, emerging markets bonds and other types of fixed-income securities, today announced results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2008.
Total revenues for the first quarter of 2008 decreased 3.5% to $22.9 million, compared to $23.8 million for the first quarter of 2007. Pre-tax income for the first quarter of 2008 was $3.0 million, compared to $4.5 million for the first quarter of 2007, a decrease of 33.7%. Net income for the first quarter of 2008 totaled $1.6 million, or $0.05 per share on a diluted basis, compared to $2.5 million, or $0.07 per share on a diluted basis, for the first quarter of 2007.
For the first quarter of 2007, pre-tax margin was 12.9%, compared to 18.8% for the first quarter of 2007.
Richard M. McVey, chairman and chief executive officer of MarketAxess, commented, "Our base of recurring revenue, the improving quality of business traded over the MarketAxess platform, and growing contributions from new businesses all helped to preserve profitability and cash flow through these extraordinary times for credit markets, although trading volumes during the first quarter continued to be negatively impacted by dealer balance sheet constraints. Our strategy to increase client technology integration and expand customer order flow is on track, and we continue opportunistically to explore means to enhance the liquidity available to our dealer and investor clients on our platform. Importantly, business diversification is improving, advanced by our acquisition of Greenline Financial Technologies, Inc. ("GFT"), and we see significant opportunities for growth when market conditions stabilize."
First Quarter Results
Total revenue for the first quarter of 2008 decreased 3.5% to $22.9 million, compared to $23.8 million for the first quarter of 2007. Commission revenue totaled $19.3 million on total trading volume of $64.5 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $20.7 million in commission revenue on total trading volume of $104.5 billion for the first quarter of 2007. U.S. high-grade corporate bond commissions decreased 9.4% to $12.4 million on trading volume of $38.8 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $13.7 million in commissions on trading volume of $60.8 billion for the first quarter of 2007. U.S. high-grade fixed-rate and floating-rate bond trading volume in the first quarter of 2008 totaled $33.5 billion and $2.8 billion, respectively, compared to $40.4 billion and $15.5 billion, respectively, in the first quarter of 2007. Total U.S. high-grade trading volume includes single-dealer inquiries of $2.4 billion and $4.9 billion for the first quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2007, respectively. U.S. high-grade trading volume as a percentage of FINRA's high-grade TRACE trading volume decreased to an estimated 7.3% for the first quarter of 2008, compared to an estimated 9.4% for the first quarter of 2007.
European high-grade corporate bond commissions decreased 3.5% to $4.6 million on trading volume of $8.1 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $4.8 million in commissions on trading volume of $28.3 billion for the first quarter of 2007. European high-grade bond commissions in the first quarter of 2008 included distribution fees of $3.7 million and variable transaction fees of $0.9 million, based on the European pricing plan that was introduced in June 2007.
Other commissions, which include emerging markets, high yield, credit default swaps and agencies, increased 2.1% to $2.3 million on trading volume of $17.6 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $2.3 million in commissions on $15.3 billion in trading volume for the first quarter of 2007.
Technology products and services, which reflects revenue for technology licenses, support and professional services from our recent acquisitions of GFT and Trade West Systems ("TWS"), totaled $0.8 million in the first quarter of 2008.
Other revenue, which consists of information and user access fees, investment income and other revenue, decreased 5.6% to $2.9 million for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $3.0 million for the first quarter of 2007.
There were a total of 61 and 62 trading days in the U.S. and U.K., respectively, in the first quarter of 2008, compared to 62 and 64 trading days in the U.S. and U.K., respectively, in the first quarter of 2007.
Total expenses for the first quarter of 2008, which include expenses from the acquisition of GFT and TWS, increased 3.5% to $20.0 million, compared to $19.3 million for the first quarter of 2007. Employee compensation and benefits expense, which includes $0.4 million in severance costs, decreased 4.2% to $11.0 million, compared to $11.5 million for the first quarter of 2007. Professional and consulting expenses increased 17.3% to $2.2 million, compared to $1.8 million for the first quarter of 2007. General and administrative expenses increased 32.8% to $1.6 million, compared to $1.2 million for the first quarter of 2007.
Pre-tax income for the first quarter of 2008 was $3.0 million, compared to $4.5 million for the first quarter of 2007. Pre-tax margin was 12.9% for the first quarter of 2008, compared to 18.8% for the first quarter of 2007.
The effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2008 was 46.2%, compared to 45.2% for the first quarter of 2007. The first quarter 2008 effective tax rate was unfavorably impacted by the absence of a research and development tax credit, a decrease in tax-exempt investment income and a relative increase in non-deductible expenses.
Net income for the first quarter of 2008 was $1.6 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, compared to $2.5 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2007.
Employee headcount as of March 31, 2008 was 202, compared to 171 as of March 31, 2007. First quarter 2008 headcount includes the addition of 25 employees from the acquisition of GFT on March 5, 2008.
Total revenues for the first quarter of 2008 decreased 3.5% to $22.9 million, compared to $23.8 million for the first quarter of 2007. Pre-tax income for the first quarter of 2008 was $3.0 million, compared to $4.5 million for the first quarter of 2007, a decrease of 33.7%. Net income for the first quarter of 2008 totaled $1.6 million, or $0.05 per share on a diluted basis, compared to $2.5 million, or $0.07 per share on a diluted basis, for the first quarter of 2007.
For the first quarter of 2007, pre-tax margin was 12.9%, compared to 18.8% for the first quarter of 2007.
Richard M. McVey, chairman and chief executive officer of MarketAxess, commented, "Our base of recurring revenue, the improving quality of business traded over the MarketAxess platform, and growing contributions from new businesses all helped to preserve profitability and cash flow through these extraordinary times for credit markets, although trading volumes during the first quarter continued to be negatively impacted by dealer balance sheet constraints. Our strategy to increase client technology integration and expand customer order flow is on track, and we continue opportunistically to explore means to enhance the liquidity available to our dealer and investor clients on our platform. Importantly, business diversification is improving, advanced by our acquisition of Greenline Financial Technologies, Inc. ("GFT"), and we see significant opportunities for growth when market conditions stabilize."
First Quarter Results
Total revenue for the first quarter of 2008 decreased 3.5% to $22.9 million, compared to $23.8 million for the first quarter of 2007. Commission revenue totaled $19.3 million on total trading volume of $64.5 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $20.7 million in commission revenue on total trading volume of $104.5 billion for the first quarter of 2007. U.S. high-grade corporate bond commissions decreased 9.4% to $12.4 million on trading volume of $38.8 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $13.7 million in commissions on trading volume of $60.8 billion for the first quarter of 2007. U.S. high-grade fixed-rate and floating-rate bond trading volume in the first quarter of 2008 totaled $33.5 billion and $2.8 billion, respectively, compared to $40.4 billion and $15.5 billion, respectively, in the first quarter of 2007. Total U.S. high-grade trading volume includes single-dealer inquiries of $2.4 billion and $4.9 billion for the first quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2007, respectively. U.S. high-grade trading volume as a percentage of FINRA's high-grade TRACE trading volume decreased to an estimated 7.3% for the first quarter of 2008, compared to an estimated 9.4% for the first quarter of 2007.
European high-grade corporate bond commissions decreased 3.5% to $4.6 million on trading volume of $8.1 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $4.8 million in commissions on trading volume of $28.3 billion for the first quarter of 2007. European high-grade bond commissions in the first quarter of 2008 included distribution fees of $3.7 million and variable transaction fees of $0.9 million, based on the European pricing plan that was introduced in June 2007.
Other commissions, which include emerging markets, high yield, credit default swaps and agencies, increased 2.1% to $2.3 million on trading volume of $17.6 billion for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $2.3 million in commissions on $15.3 billion in trading volume for the first quarter of 2007.
Technology products and services, which reflects revenue for technology licenses, support and professional services from our recent acquisitions of GFT and Trade West Systems ("TWS"), totaled $0.8 million in the first quarter of 2008.
Other revenue, which consists of information and user access fees, investment income and other revenue, decreased 5.6% to $2.9 million for the first quarter of 2008, compared to $3.0 million for the first quarter of 2007.
There were a total of 61 and 62 trading days in the U.S. and U.K., respectively, in the first quarter of 2008, compared to 62 and 64 trading days in the U.S. and U.K., respectively, in the first quarter of 2007.
Total expenses for the first quarter of 2008, which include expenses from the acquisition of GFT and TWS, increased 3.5% to $20.0 million, compared to $19.3 million for the first quarter of 2007. Employee compensation and benefits expense, which includes $0.4 million in severance costs, decreased 4.2% to $11.0 million, compared to $11.5 million for the first quarter of 2007. Professional and consulting expenses increased 17.3% to $2.2 million, compared to $1.8 million for the first quarter of 2007. General and administrative expenses increased 32.8% to $1.6 million, compared to $1.2 million for the first quarter of 2007.
Pre-tax income for the first quarter of 2008 was $3.0 million, compared to $4.5 million for the first quarter of 2007. Pre-tax margin was 12.9% for the first quarter of 2008, compared to 18.8% for the first quarter of 2007.
The effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2008 was 46.2%, compared to 45.2% for the first quarter of 2007. The first quarter 2008 effective tax rate was unfavorably impacted by the absence of a research and development tax credit, a decrease in tax-exempt investment income and a relative increase in non-deductible expenses.
Net income for the first quarter of 2008 was $1.6 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, compared to $2.5 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2007.
Employee headcount as of March 31, 2008 was 202, compared to 171 as of March 31, 2007. First quarter 2008 headcount includes the addition of 25 employees from the acquisition of GFT on March 5, 2008.
Friday, 4 April 2008
Trading Glossary
aMembers or their customers.
3
Floor Trader
Also known as a "local". Exchange member who only trades for his own account.
Futures
All contracts covering purchase and sale of financial instruments or physical commodities for future delivery on a commodity futures exchange.
3
GAAP
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
Hedge
Strategy to limit investment loss by effecting a transaction which offsets an existing position.
Holder
Purchaser of an option
IFRS
International Financial Reporting Standards
IFRS 3
Accounting standard for "business combinations" or Merger and Acquisitions transactions. First standard written jointly by International Accounting Standards Board and the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board.
Initial Performance Bond
Also known as "Initial Margin". Funds required when a futures position is opened.
Integrity and Ethics
Reside under the Control Environment. The senior management need to set the tone for the company. Whilst they might be considered "soft" and "intangible" concepts, they affect the design, administration and monitoring of
Negative examples of integrity and ethics are the infamous Enron and WorldCom scandals.
A positive example is BP which sets a high bar for ethical behaviour by employees. To back this policy up they make mention of it and its effectiveness in financial reports.
In-the-money
Occurs if the strike price of a call option is less than the market price of the underlying security. For put options the strike price has to be higher than the market price of the underlying security for it to be in-the money.p>Intrinsic Value
Amount by which an option is in-the-money.
ISDA
International Swaps and Derivatives Association
LTCM
Long Term Capital Management
Margin Requirement for Options
Amount an uncovered (naked) option writer is required to deposit and maintain to cover a position. Calculated
Market Order
Order for immediate execution given to a broker to buy or sell at the best obtainable price.
Mark-To-Market
Daily adjustment of margin accounts to reflect profit and loss.
MD&A
Management's Disclosure and Analysis
Mezzanine
When applied to finance refers to moderate risk or mid level.
Minimum Price Fluctuation
Smallest increment of price movement possible in trading a given contract. It is also referred to as "lead month".
MUST
Multi-Underlying Structured Trade
NASPP
National Association of Stock Plan Professionals
Nearby
Nearest active trading month of a futures or options on futures contract.
NYSE
New York Stock Exchange
Offer
Price at which an investor is willing to sell a futures or options contract. Offset buying if one has sold, or selling if one has bought, a futures or options on futures contract.
Omgeo
Vendor of post-execution trade management solutions.
Omgeo TradeSuite
US trade confirmation service from Omgeo
Open Interest
Total number of futures or options on futures contracts that have not yet been offset or fulfilled by delivery. An indicator of the depth or liquidity of a market (the ability to buy or sell at or near a given price) and of the
Private Equity Intelligence
Research group specialising in the private equity arena.
Private File Creator
Private File Creator from Accuity allows users to create and maintain personalized lists of relevant business entities for use in their enhanced due diligence and Know Your Customer programs.
Prodiance
Provider of enterprise spreadsheet management
Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
Organization set up under Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002 to regulate auditing of public companies and auditors.
Quantifi
provider of analytics and risk management solutions for the global credit markets.
Regulation FD
Regulation Fair Disclosure
Rule enforced by the SEC requiring U.S. to make available to the public that they make to securities analysts. If the disclosure is intentional the release has to be simultaneous. Unintentional
Repo
The practice of loaning out shares in return for cash.
Risk Assessment
One of five components of internal control according to the COSO Internal Control Framework
Risks faced by the company have to be recognized. Objectives have to be set, integrated into the value-chain. To achieve the objectives, risks have to be identified, analyzed and develop methods to manage them.
Rule 13a-15 (e)
SEC rule which defines Disclosure Controls and Procedures.
Rule 13a-15 (f)
SEC rule which defines Internal Control over Financial Reporting
SCSE
Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics
SEC
Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOX
Shorthand for Sarbanes-Oxley.
Structured Notes
Derivatives-linked bonds designed to deliver high returns over a fixed period.
Synthetic Collateralised Debt Obligations
Repackaged portfolios of credit derivatives.
TOCOM
Tokyo Commodity Exchange
TS2
System proprosed by the ECB for a single securities settlements across the Eurozone.
TSE
Tokyo Stock Exchange
Monday, 31 March 2008
VTB Bank Europe plc, has selected SONARIS/Bonds, the high-performance bond pricing engine from ORIMOS, a leading provider of front-office technology. VTB traders and sales benefit from the comprehensive functionality offered by SONARIS, ranging from pricing and real-time risk to market alerts and history charts for prices, yields and spreads.
George Niedringhaus, Managing Director, Head of VTB Europe's Fixed Income Sales and Trading, comments: "We needed to overhaul our trading capabilities quickly so we focused on the most capable off-the-shelf solutions in the market. Specifically, we needed a state-of-the-art pricing engine which would give our emerging market fixed income traders superior analytics and up-to-the-minute market awareness. After careful review, SONARIS came out on top and we are pleased with how responsive they have been with our requests for productivity-enhancing customization."
Chris Axton, Head of VTB IT, London, added: “Putting a system in place that fits our requirements, integrates with our infrastructure and simply runs with low operational overhead were our top priorities. SONARIS meets all of these needs.”
Guido Hagemann, CEO, ORIMOS, said: “We are extremely pleased that ORIMOS was the selected provider of pricing and analytics to VTB. This is our first Russian client and further expands our emerging market product usage and presence.”
George Niedringhaus, Managing Director, Head of VTB Europe's Fixed Income Sales and Trading, comments: "We needed to overhaul our trading capabilities quickly so we focused on the most capable off-the-shelf solutions in the market. Specifically, we needed a state-of-the-art pricing engine which would give our emerging market fixed income traders superior analytics and up-to-the-minute market awareness. After careful review, SONARIS came out on top and we are pleased with how responsive they have been with our requests for productivity-enhancing customization."
Chris Axton, Head of VTB IT, London, added: “Putting a system in place that fits our requirements, integrates with our infrastructure and simply runs with low operational overhead were our top priorities. SONARIS meets all of these needs.”
Guido Hagemann, CEO, ORIMOS, said: “We are extremely pleased that ORIMOS was the selected provider of pricing and analytics to VTB. This is our first Russian client and further expands our emerging market product usage and presence.”
Friday, 28 March 2008
ICAP Opens Indian Platform
ICAP (IAP.L), an international interdealer broker, announced today the launch of an electronic bond platform to service wholesale market participants in the Indian corporate debt sector. The platform was officially opened by Indian Finance Minister P Chidambaram at a ceremony in Mumbai.
ICAP gained approval for an electronic broking system from the Securities Exchange Board of India in November 2007 and has since moved quickly to deliver a solution to the market.
Manish Sabharwal, CEO of ICAP India, said: “We are delighted to be in a position to extend ICAP’s proven global technologies to India’s corporate debt market participants and believe this will prove a major catalyst towards the SEBI’s goal of increasing liquidity and efficiencies in the burgeoning marketplace.”
Finance Minister P Chidambaram’s recent Union Budget highlighted measures important to the development of a robust domestic corporate bond market. These measures will enhance investment, benefit Indian companies, and improve the availability of finances for infrastructure development.
Commenting on the launch, Don McClumpha, Deputy CEO of ICAP Asia-Pacific, said: “The Indian markets are a key focus for our expansion across the region. ICAP will continue to invest and deliver the world’s leading technologies to OTC market participants to increase liquidity and further facilitate innovation.”
The market is expecting further reforms aimed at streamlining issuance procedures and boosting liquidity such as the borrowing/lending of securities. ICAP has successfully combined voice and electronic services in securities markets to enhance price discovery and trade opportunity for market participants and has built a strong position in repo markets globally.
ICAP gained approval for an electronic broking system from the Securities Exchange Board of India in November 2007 and has since moved quickly to deliver a solution to the market.
Manish Sabharwal, CEO of ICAP India, said: “We are delighted to be in a position to extend ICAP’s proven global technologies to India’s corporate debt market participants and believe this will prove a major catalyst towards the SEBI’s goal of increasing liquidity and efficiencies in the burgeoning marketplace.”
Finance Minister P Chidambaram’s recent Union Budget highlighted measures important to the development of a robust domestic corporate bond market. These measures will enhance investment, benefit Indian companies, and improve the availability of finances for infrastructure development.
Commenting on the launch, Don McClumpha, Deputy CEO of ICAP Asia-Pacific, said: “The Indian markets are a key focus for our expansion across the region. ICAP will continue to invest and deliver the world’s leading technologies to OTC market participants to increase liquidity and further facilitate innovation.”
The market is expecting further reforms aimed at streamlining issuance procedures and boosting liquidity such as the borrowing/lending of securities. ICAP has successfully combined voice and electronic services in securities markets to enhance price discovery and trade opportunity for market participants and has built a strong position in repo markets globally.
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