Latest: Austrian association bolsters ranks with new addition

Gettex exchange has joined the Austrian certificate association (Zertifikate Forum Austria or ZFA) as a supporting member.

We see this addition as recognition of the development of the Austrian certificates market - Frank Weingarts, ZFA

Gettex, a subsidiary of the Bavarian stock exchange (Bayerische Börse), is a stock exchange for all types of investors – from retail investors to asset managers and institutional investors. It currently lists around 405,000 financial products including certificates.

According to Lars Reichel, director sales & head of issuer relations at Gettex, the exchange wants to strengthen its activities in Austria as many of its partners such as direct banks, online brokers, neo-brokers are also very active in Austria, or are coming directly from Austria.

‘We have the impression that it is a very lively and innovative market, and we are firmly convinced that Gettex offers interesting and cost-effective opportunities for traders,’ stated Reichel who is the former head of structured products for Germany, Austria and Luxembourg at UBS (until September 2021).

Frank Weingarts (pictured), CEO of the ZFA, added: ‘We see this addition as recognition of the development of the Austrian certificates market’.

Swiss platform goes multilingual

Vizibility has announced the launch of a multilingual set up as it continues to adapt to the needs of international clients.

Clients in various regions such as the Americas, Europe and Asia will now be able to choose between English, Spanish, and French to transact products on the platform. The platform is now developing Italian and Chinese versions as part of its ongoing geographic expansion efforts.

‘One of the main virtues of our platform is its flexibility,’ said Aurelien Vicart, managing director at Vizibility. “We can offer different payoffs and adapt to the different business models of our clients, making us the most versatile platform in the market.’

The language expansion underscores the platform's dedication ‘to global diversity and inclusion, meeting the unique needs of users worldwide’, added Vicart.

‘This achievement emphasizes the company's commitment to excellence and innovation, bolstering our confidence in the future and further strengthening our global market position,’ he said.

EBA revises reporting requirements for market risk

As the implementation of the Fundamental Review of the Trading Book (FRTB) in the EU approaches, the European Banking Authority (EBA) has revised the information to be reported on own funds requirements under the alternative approaches and has added reporting on reclassifications of instrument between the regulatory books.

The amending technical standards complement the high-level information on the alternative standardised approach (ASA) that has been reported since 2021 with details on the instruments and positions in scope of the ASA.

The revised standards also include a summary and detailed information on the instruments and positions in scope under the alternative internal model approach (AIMA). 

The amending technical standards also introduce a simple template capturing information on the reclassification of instruments between the banking and trading books of an institution. 

The revised reporting requirements, excluding the reporting on reclassifications, are expected to apply, for the first time, for the reporting as of the reference date of 31 March 2025.

The updated data point model, validation rules and XBRL taxonomy accompanying the legal text will be published as part of the next release of the EBA reporting framework.

JPM rolls out options-based high-income fund in HK

J.P. Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) has unveiled its JPMorgan Asia Equity High Income fund (AEHI), which comprises a portfolio seeking higher income with reduced volatility.

Investing primarily in Asia Pacific (Apac) ex-Japan equities, the fund aims at generating a consistently high level of income while maintaining prospects for capital appreciation. The fund will also implement an option overlay on an underlying equity income portfolio, to generate additional distributable income.

‘Cash rates are likely to trend lower over time as we anticipate a slowdown in economic growth and inflation. Consequently, investors in Hong Kong are seeking alternative options for passive income,’ said Elisa Ng, Hong Kong chief executive officer and head of Hong Kong funds and institutional business, J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

The fund is expected to deliver 7-9% income over the cycle; typically, 3-4% comes from dividends derived from the equity portfolio and 4-5% comes from premium earned from call overwriting.

The fund invests primarily through stock selection with a 34% allocation to China and Hong Kong.

The fund is authorised by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for sale to retail investors and is registered with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) under the restricted scheme for distribution to accredited investors.

In Hong Kong, JPMAM is working with more than 14 distributors to distribute the fund through major intermediary channels, and the fund is also available on its investment platform Morgan Direct.

Swiss watchdog aligns to global gegulations

The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) has announced a re-evaluation of its regulations to align to the landscape of financial regulations in key global centers.

The regulator said it will align its guidelines to match the Canadian securities regulatory authorities new business conduct rule aimed at governing OTC derivatives dealers and advisors. Set to become effective by September 2024, this rule was also designed to allign Canadian standards with global practices.

The new rules in Canda are designed to fortify transparency, accountability, and ethical practices within the OTC derivatives market.

This regulation encompasses mandates related to fair dealing, conflict of interest management, reporting non-compliance, and diligent recordkeeping.

Finma's guidance now involves a risk-based monitoring model, emphasising rigorous scrutiny aligned with the assessed risk levels of the entities.