Alton Drew

Author: Alton Drew

I graduated from The Florida State University with a Bachelor of Science in economics and political science (1984); a Master of Public Administration (1993); and a Juris Doctor (1999). I am a member of the Maryland Bar and practice political law. You can follow me on Twitter @altondrew. You can email me at altondrew@altondrew.com.

Interbank market news scan: Cryptocurrency advocates moving to bolster their advocacy prowess in DC …

Posted by on in central banks, foreign exchange2 Comments

Digital currency. Atlas Organization founder Dr. Jonathan Ward, an expert on Chinese global strategy, discussed how the Biden administration can create competitive policies against China and argued that creating its own digital currency that is controlled by its central bank will “offset” U.S. sanctions, during an interview on FOX Business’ “Mornings with Maria.” China creating own digital currency will ‘offset’ US sanctions: Jonathan Ward | Fox Business

Foreign exchange, digital yuan. The United States’ reliance on economic sanctions to coerce other countries is gradually losing its effectiveness and slowly degrading one of Washington’s most influential tools in international affairs, the power of the U.S. dollar, experts told Newsweek. Sanctions Are Destroying U.S. Dollar’s Status as World’s Top Currency (newsweek.com)

Cryptocurrency. Even as cryptocurrencies steadily gain support on Wall Street, they’re still regarded by regulators as a tool for criminals to conceal shady transactions — posing a challenge to the nascent industry as it seeks to win wider respect. Bitcoin (BTC USD) Cryptocurrency Price News: Industry Forms Lobby to Shed Image – Bloomberg

Digital currency. A cyber yuan gives Beijing power to track spending in real time. Importantly, it’s money that isn’t linked to the dollar-dominated global financial system. Anxiety in the US as China Creates the First Major Digital Currency (thestreet.com)

Foreign exchange, India. Currency exchange rates can turn out to be a real dealbreaker and can cause a dent in an individual’s pocket who is traveling overseas. Even a difference of a few paise while doing currency conversion can make a huge difference in the budget for the trip. It becomes crucial to be aware of the various options while doing currency exchange. Currency Exchange and the related details (msn.com)

Cryptocurrency, Ethereum. Blockchain technology Ethereum has seen its price reach a new all-time high of $2,150 following Visa’s decision to allow cryptocurrency for transactions on its platform. World’s second-biggest cryptocurrency Ethereum hits new high of $2,150 after Visa agrees to allow crypto-payments on its network (msn.com)

Digital currency, Bank of Japan. Japan’s central bank has started trials of a new digital currency in an effort to experiment with how it might be used, the Bank of Japan announced on Monday. The announcement comes after the Chinese government revealed it was doing something very similar with a digital yuan in early March. Japan’s Central Bank Launches One-Year Test of Digital Currency (gizmodo.com)

Currency PairsRates as of 2:30 pm 6 April 2021
EUR/USD1.1853
AUD/USD0.7661
GBP/USD1.3809
USD/JPY109.8700
NZD/USD0.7044
USD/CHF0.9322
USD/NOK8.5005
USD/SEK8.6312
USD/CAD1.2553
  
Selected Rates 
Fed Funds.07
Bank prime rate3.25
Discount window.25
2-yr Treasury.16
10-yr Treasury1.65
30-yr2.31
Source: Bloomberg, Reuters

Interbank market news scan: Five thousand dollars in suspicious activity results in $200K fine for OANDA …

Posted by on in foreign exchange, National Futures Association, NFALeave a comment

Regulatory news. NFA has ordered OANDA Corporation (OANDA), an NFA Member retail foreign exchange dealer and futures commission merchant headquartered in Toronto, Canada, to pay a $200,000 fine. The Decision, issued by NFA’s Business Conduct Committee (BCC), is based on a Complaint issued by the BCC and a settlement offer submitted by OANDA. The BCC found that OANDA failed to submit accurate daily forex reports to NFA and failed to supervise. News & Notices | NFA (futures.org)

Strategic takeaway. The National Futures Association’s complaint illustrates the necessity of defining and maintaining your regulatory strategic position. Although the foreign exchange market is near unregulated in terms of price setting, market entry and maintenance of entry are regulated where the goal is a balancing act between ensuring that investors/traders are availed a high degree of market transparency regarding pricing, broker qualifications and integrity, and the integrity of a brokerage platform and the dealer’s need to seek out and maintain data on best currency prices, disseminating that information to investor/traders, while controlling costs and increasing profits.

A main component of maintaining a regulatory strategic position is consistency in not only implementing your own compliance program, but in auditing its performance. For example, failure to detect suspicious activity, respond in a consistent and timely manner to customer complaints, notice red flags from wire activity, adopt written protocols for protecting against technology threats, and file required reports to the U.S. Department of the Treasury or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are indicative of consistent auditing within an organization.

OANDA’s problem started out with a customer complaint involving an unauthorized transfer of $5,000 out of a customer’s account. The resulting $200,000 fine may have been avoided.

Interbank market news scan: Dollar expected to gain as markets open in Europe and the US on Monday ….

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Payment systems. You still can’t deposit or withdraw digital assets from PayPal, which undercuts the technology’s appeal as a way to put individuals back in control of their money in a world of unchecked asset seizures and involuntary bank bail-ins. But now you can at least use the service to buy stuff. Opinion: Crypto as a Payment System? Here We Go Again – CoinDesk

Payment systems. Despite its mass acceptance and large user base, one such institution brought into the spotlight of legal debate is Google India’s payments operation, Google Pay. This article explains the legal debate behind it and what it means for India’s payments ecosystem. Can Third-Party Applications Be Classified As Payment System Operators? (inc42.com)

Payment systems. A patient payments technology venture that counts local players Nashville Capital Network and i3 Verticals among its owners has been bought by Bank of America. BofA buys health care payments player | Nashville Post

Foreign exchange: speculation. EUR/USD begins the week not correlated to its cross pairs and explains why EUR/USD traded lower into deeply oversold. Currency Market: FX weekly and EM (fxstreet.com)

Foreign exchange: interbank. The dollar was poised to extend gains against major currencies on Monday after the U.S. jobs report at the end of last week showed the nation’s labour market is recovering from the impact of the coronavirus shock. Dollar holds advantage as economic data point to more gains | Reuters

Currency PairsRates as of 10 pm 4 April 2021
EUR/USD1.1764
AUD/USD0.7619
GBP/USD1.3826
USD/JPY110.5700
NZD/USD0.7024
USD/CHF0.9415
USD/NOK8.5303
USD/SEK8.7252
USD/CAD1.2564
  
Selected Rates 
Fed Funds.07
Bank prime rate3.25
Discount window.25
2-yr Treasury.18
10-yr Treasury1.71
30-yr2.35
Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters

Interbank market news scan: Foreign exchange rates as the markets enter Easter weekend and the American capitol sees another attack …

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Politics. A motorist rammed a vehicle into U.S. Capitol police on Friday and brandished a knife, killing one officer and injuring another and forcing the Capitol complex to lock down in an attack that police said did not immediately appear to be terrorism-related. Police officer killed in vehicle attack on U.S. Capitol | Reuters

Currency PairsRates as of 4:11pm 2 April 2021
EUR/USD1.1762
AUD/USD0.7602
GBP/USD1.3821
USD/JPY110.6800
NZD/USD0.7018
USD/CHF0.9421
USD/NOK8.5278
USD/SEK8.7239
USD/CAD1.2568
  
Selected Rates 
Fed Funds.07
Bank prime rate3.25
Discount window.25
2-yr Treasury.19
10-yr Treasury1.72
30-yr2.36
Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters

Interbank market news scan: The equity markets in the US may be closed, but foreign exchange markets are not resting in light of an improving employment picture …

Posted by on in employment, foreign exchange, unemployment, yieldLeave a comment

The U,S, Department of Labor today reported that non-farm payrolls increased in March by 916,000 employees while the unemployment rate fell to 6.0%. Employment gains were led buy the leisure and hospitality, public and private education, and construction sectors. THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION — MARCH 2021 (dol.gov)

Currency PairsRates as of 9:19am 2 April 2021
EUR/USD1.1768
AUD/USD0.7614
GBP/USD1.3837
USD/JPY110.5800
NZD/USD0.7032
USD/CHF0.9409
USD/NOK8.5335
USD/SEK8.7131
USD/CAD1.2548
  
Selected Rates 
Fed Funds.07
Bank prime rate3.25
Discount window.25
2-yr Treasury.18
10-yr Treasury1.71
30-yr2.36
Sources: Reuters, Bloomberg

The Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach commercial real estate market feels heat …

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The National Association of Realtors in its Commercial Real Estate Metro Market Report for Q4 2020 determined that the Miami-Fort Lauderdale West Palm Beach, Florida commercial real estate market is weak. The apartment sector is experiencing faster rent growth than nationally. There is a loss in office occupancy and office rent growth is weaker than nationally. There is a loss in office occupancy and office rent growth is weaker than nationally. In the industrial sector, the industrial vacancy rate is higher than nationally and more construction is underway than nationally. Its retail trade jobs are not growing as fast than nationally. In the hotel/lodging sector, leisure and hospitality jobs are shrinking. There is a lower share of of businesses openings than nationally. In 2019, the area experienced net out-migration.

Commercial transactions are likely to pick up in the second half of 2021 and in 2022 as more people get vaccinated and more businesses open. Higher fiscal spending and monetary accommodation will boost growth nationally and in the area.

Selected statistics

Currency PairsRates as of 4:11pm 1 April 2021
EUR/USD1.1770
AUD/USD0.7614
GBP/USD1.3829
USD/JPY110.5900
NZD/USD0.7021
USD/CHF0.9418
USD/NOK8.5275
USD/SEK8.7131
USD/CAD1.2551
  
Selected Rates 
Fed Funds.07
Bank prime rate3.25
Discount window.25
2-yr Treasury.16
10-yr Treasury1.67
30-yr2.33
Economic IndicatorQ4 2020Q3 2020Q4 2019
Apartment rent$1,515$1,489$1,521
Office asking rent per square foot$38.7$37.7$37.0
Multifamily rental vacancy rate5.8%4.7%7.3%
Industrial asking rent per square foot$9.3$9.3$8.7
Source: Bloomberg, Reuters, Federal Reserve

Interbank market news scan: Foreign exchange markets preparing for U.S. jobs situation report…

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March’s Nonfarm Payrolls report, which is due out on Friday at 12:30 GMT, is set to show an increase of 630,000 jobs. Here you can find the forecasts of economists and researchers of eight major banks regarding the upcoming employment data. Nonfarm Payrolls Preview: Forecast from eight major banks for March jobs report (fxstreet.com)

The U.S. dollar will remain strong for at least another month, according to a Reuters poll of foreign exchange strategists, who still forecast that the currency will weaken in the longer term. U.S. Dollar to Remain Strong for at Least Another Month: Reuters Poll | Investing News | US News

Currency PairsRates as of 2:15pm 1 April 2021
EUR/USD1.1775
AUD/USD0.7607
GBP/USD1.3824
USD/JPY110.5800
NZD/USD0.7021
USD/CHF0.9413
USD/NOK8.5295
USD/SEK8.7090
USD/CAD1.2565
  
Selected Rates 
Fed Funds.07
Bank prime rate3.25
Discount window.25
2-yr Treasury.16
10-yr Treasury1.68
30-yr2.34
Source: Bloomberg, Federal Reserve, Reuters

The outlook for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell commercial real estate market …

Posted by on in Atlanta, commercial real estate, industrial real estateLeave a comment

According to the National Association of Realtors commercial real estate outlook for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Georgia area, Q4 2020, the market is modest. The NAR found the following:

“The apartment sector is experiencing faster rent growth than nationally. There is a loss in office occupancy and office rent growth is weaker than nationally. In the industrial sector, the industrial vacancy rate is higher than nationally and more construction is underway than nationally. Its retail trade jobs are growing faster than nationally. In the hotel/lodging sector, leisure and hospitality jobs are shrinking. There is a higher share of business openings than nationally. In 2019, the area experienced net in-migration.

Commercial transactions are likely to pick up in the second half of 2021 and in 2022 as more people get vaccinated and more businesses open. Higher fiscal spending and monetary accommodation will boost growth nationally and in the area.”

Selected statistics:

Economic IndicatorQ4 2020Q3 2020Q4 2019
Apartment rent$1,265$1,248$1,232
Office asking rent per square foot$28.0$28.1$27.1
Multifamily rental vacancy rate7.7%5.8%5.9%
Industrial asking rent per square foot$4.9$4.6$4.5

The outlook for commercial real estate in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD area …

Posted by on in commercial real estate, foreign direct investment, industrial real estateLeave a comment

According to the National Association of Realtors Commercial Real Estate Metro Market Report for the 4th quarter 2020, the commercial real estate market for the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, Maryland area was weak. The report stated the following:

“The apartment sector is experiencing faster rent growth than nationally. There is a loss in office occupancy and office rent growth is weaker than nationally. There is a loss in office occupancy and office rent growth is weaker than nationally. In the industrial sector, the industrial vacancy rate is higher than nationally and less construction is underway than nationally. Its retail trade jobs are not growing as fast than nationally. In the hotel/lodging sector, leisure and hospitality jobs are shrinking. There is a higher share of business openings than nationally. In 2019, the area experienced net out-migration.

Commercial transactions are likely to pick up in the second half of 2021 and in 2022 as more people get vaccinated and more businesses open. Higher fiscal spending and monetary accommodation will boost growth nationally and in the area.”

Select Statistics:

Economic IndicatorQ4 2020Q3 2020Q4 2019
Apartment rent$1,456$1,451$1,424
Office asking rent per square foot$23.3$23.3$23.9
Apartment rental vacancy rate8.0%9.6%8.1%
Industrial asking rent per square foot$7.1$6.9$6.8
Source: National Association of Realtors

Interbank market news scan: Foreign exchange and selected interest rates at 9:03 am EST 1 April 2021

Posted by on in Federal Reserve, foreign exchangeLeave a comment
Currency PairsRates as of 9:01am 1 April 2021
EUR/USD1.1745
AUD/USD0.7567
GBP/USD1.3786
USD/JPY110.7500
NZD/USD0.6988
USD/CHF0.9456
USD/NOK8.5446
USD/SEK8.7355
USD/CAD1.2590
  
Selected Rates 
Fed Funds.07
Bank prime rate3.25
Discount window.25
2-yr Treasury.16
10-yr Treasury1.70
30-yr2.36
Sources: Bloomberg, Federal Reserve, Reuters