I confess to feeling a bit depressed this week. Like many of my old muckers in the market, I’m fed up of the narrow ranges that suggest we’ve already sailed into the summer doldrums. My mood has not been helped by an irrational fear that the global economic downturn is far from over, despite what numerous politicians and central bankers keep claiming.

I am thinking about writing the screenplay for a new Godfather film which continues the saga of the fictional Corleone family. I wrote a synopsis, but knowing full-well that it won’t get approved by the legal eagles, I can’t tell you fully what it says. What I can divulge though is that it is set in a US government-rescued investment bank, involves lots of favours from the Godfather and the obligatory horse’s heads on trading desks. It’s sure to be a winner.

Financial regulator decides to increase margin requirements on retail FX trading

The Mexican peso has completed a year as a CLS-eligible currency. During June 2009, the peak month to date, the average daily volume of instructions settled in Mexican peso was 2,468 with a USD equivalent value of $15 billion, compared with 1,389 worth $17 billion in June 2008 – a volume growth of over 77%.

Self-confessed petrol head Kelvin Jouhar, head of spot FX trading at Lloyds, is about to take part in the Scally Rally again, accompanied by his two daughters Victoria and Sarah (see his attempt a couple of years ago).

A group of leading inter-dealer brokers have got together to launch an association to promote a better understanding of the critical role they play in the efficient functioning of financial markets and improve the quality and standards of the industry.

Back in the old days, I remember a sales jub challenging me to make a price good enough for a large oil company to trade on in USD/DEM. “64 choice,” I replied. The client didn’t trade; apparently, it had got a better choice price away.

Saxo has confirmed that the well-liked and well-connected Nick Beecroft is acting as a consultant at its London office, although I’m not sure how attractive that is, given that the office recently suffered from an outbreak of swine flu.

HSBC has appointed Chris Peters as its head of FX sales, Americas. Peters will be responsible for distribution of the full range of foreign exchange products to the HSBC client base in the region. Peters joined HSBC in 2002 after a 12-year stint at JPMorgan. Meanwhile, Felipe Leitao has been promoted to run HSBC’s offshore LatAm FX trading business.

Tim Chapman has apparently quit his role in hedge fund sales at HSBC London for a job in Singapore.

JPMorgan Chase has confirmed that it has hired Peter Klein, once of Saxo, is its new global head of FX prime brokerage and that James Lofthouse has left his role in hedge fund/real money to go to Citi London.

Mike Peacock is rumoured to have resurfaced (see Peacock struts out of Barclays) after his recent departure from Barclays. Société Générale is said to be the favourite to capture him, although another French bank might be in the running for his expertise in FX real money sales.

Kai ‘Lucky’ Herbert, who left Bank of America in January 2008 to join Merrill Lynch, has decided to seek his fortune elsewhere. Apparently he left the combined bank to go to UBS in Zurich and trade emerging market currencies.

News that Tom Gillie had left his role at Credit Suisse in Singapore, supposedly to head back to Canada, has prompted several readers to call in. Most of them have, as is normal, told me that the reason why Gillie left has nothing to do with a lack of recognition at Credit Suisse, but everything to do with the lure of a bigger role. The buzz is that he is joining Bank of America/Merrill Lynch in a global position.

I hope the bank enjoys its spot in the limelight, because fame is transient.

The International Securities Exchange (ISE), the world’s largest equity options exchange and a wholly owned subsidiary of Eurex, has launched FX Options TV in partnership with Trading Central New York Financial Press (NYFP). Produced by NYFP and hosted by currency expert Remy Blaire, FX Options TV is a weekly online programme that focuses on macro-economic events and long-term analysis of the global currency markets. It also features Trading Central’s independent views on the psychological and technical factors driving the industry.

The IntercontinentalExchange (ICE), home of the dollar index and other FX contracts, has implemented a block trading facility for most of its products for eligible parties. This includes, among others, futures commission merchants, floor brokers and traders, broker dealers, financial institutions, insurance companies, pension funds, corporations, commodity pools, investment companies and high net-worth individuals who satisfy certain criteria. According to a source at ICE, FX trades that meet the block thresholds can now be done bilaterally and sent to ICE for clearing at no extra cost above the normal transaction charges.

A research report commissioned by UK broker Moneycorp shows, depressingly, that when it comes to managing FX exposure, many company finance directors are clueless. The research, carried out by Vanson Bourne, canvassed 500 bosses. As well as highlighting a lack of confidence in sterling, more worryingly it found that, “those responsible for managing overseas trading within businesses appear to have insufficient knowledge of how currency fluctuations can affect profits. A third (30%) of finance directors acknowledged that a lack of understanding of currency risk had had a negative impact on the bottom line, and over a quarter (26%) of those were large businesses, trading an average of £2.7 million a year.”

Retail participation in FX options has undoubtedly lagged that of spot. However, many remain optimistic that the sector offers rich potential, including Saxo Bank. It has just added a product called FX Options Board to its Saxo Trader platform. The intention is to offer standardised dates and strike increments, which the bank believes will encourage liquidity and therefore tighter pricing.

Atlanta-based FX Bridge has secured a $2 million investment from Total Technology Ventures, a major investor in financial services software and technology. The company says that the proceeds will be used to accelerate product development and the expansion of its operations. Its main product, ProTrader Plus, is a trading and risk management product offering contracts for difference, spot and options. The company says it is pulling in options liquidity from major market makers.

Confirming the volume rise reported last week, CLS says that its average daily volume for June was 669,797 payment instructions. This is a 19.1% increase on the previous month and a rise of 25.4% on June 2008. The average daily value for June was $3.7 trillion, up 14% on May.

Sources say Barclays has hired two new spot traders. Casey Maguire is said to have come from Citi Sydney to work in Singapore, and Rob Philbin from Merrill/Bank of America to work in New York.

BNP Paribas has hired Philipp Uthoff from Citi Frankfurt to cover German corporates. “This hire underscores the commitment that BNP Paribas has to expanding its footprint in risk advisory, derivatives and FX in Germany. The move also highlights the high level of attraction that BNP Paribas is enjoying with key talent in this market,” says Clive Banks, BNP Paribas’ European head of corporate derivatives.

Chris Hansen has swapped his role as head of Deutsche’s institutional client group Europe to head up the bank’s FX prime brokerage operations. Hansen will be based in London.

Saxo Bank has hired Michael Schmeja as its global head of derivative sales. Schmeja, who was previously at Royal Bank of Scotland covering financial institutions in Switzerland, has been given the task of expanding Saxo’s direct options business, as well as that of its partners. Schmeja, who will be based in Copenhagen, has also worked at Deutsche, where he was head of FX and money markets for the bank’s private wealth management group, and at JPMorgan Chase, where he was responsible for FX spot, swaps, forwards and options in Germany and Austria.

Retail platform Interbank FX has hired market veteran Peg Reed as its managing director of global sales. Reed’s responsibilities will include expanding new strategic technology and broker partnerships around the world for IBFX, particularly in the Asian market.

The job market appears to have caught a bid, thanks mainly to CIBC, which is clearly intent on building up its FX business. The bank has made two more hires to its financial solutions group in London. Natasha Crago joins from Barings Asset Management as a director, reporting to Barnie Hartley, while Ross Hefford, who is an exile from ABN Amro/RBS joins as an executive director, reporting to his former colleague Mark Sweeting.

HSBC and Credit Suisse win top honours in Euromoney Awards for Excellence; Ackermann receives Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Contribution to Financial Markets

Brady Dougan and Paul Calello stripped down Credit Suisse’s investment banking vehicle as the credit crisis hit. Now they’re showing off a streamlined, non-polluting, yet powerful firm that even their competitors admire. Is Credit Suisse the model of a new investment bank? Clive Horwood reports.

CIBC has hired Chris Dunning as its global head of FX options and Eric Ohayon as a managing director, FX and commodity structuring. Dunning, who joins from UniCredit, will be located in Toronto and reports to Tim Carrington, the bank’s global head of FX options. Ohayon, who was at Bank of America, will also be based in Toronto and reports to Bill Bamber, CIBC’s global head, structuring.