30SECOND GUIDE TO ... FX MARKET

More scandal? ACTUALLY, the continuing fallout from the previous one, which saw traders caught out fixing foreign exchange rates to make a profit from the world’s biggest financial market. Six major banks were fined and dozens of bankers fired after an investigation which brought the integrity of the entire financial services industry into doubt – again. Tell me something I didn’t know According to a new global code of conduct seen by the Reuters news agency, banks must stop traders sharing order information. It also bans traditional slang or banter being used and provides forex dealers with more guidance on what they can and cannot say. Why? We’ve had two years of market manipulation scandal and this is the latest effort to stamp out abuse. The new eight-page code wants to stop traders building their traditional relationships in the City bars and pubs and over electronic messaging systems and phone calls. Anything else? The code will also try to categorise confidential information, according to Reuters, and provide more guidance on what market participants can say to each other – particularly around the time when daily currency benchmarks are fixed. Even the Bank of England has vowed to change the way it does business, with no more ‘fireside chats’ to gather market intelligence.