JLN FX: April 5, 2012: Euro breaches Swiss franc floor; Idea for a ...

A quiet finish on a holiday weekend.? The euro took a big tumble against the Swiss franc, poking a hole in the floor that the Swiss National Bank had built.? You'll also find stories on another round of AD-Kiwi speculation; an arrest for a champagne-swilling trader; and the announcement of the MintChip, Canada's answer to an electronic currency.

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Commentary and Insight

Reforming China?s capital account
Financial Times
Rather than turning into a ?lame duck?, China?s government seems to have become proactive. Months before a landmark change of leadership, Beijing has speeded up its plans to open up its capital account. Beijing?s steps are still largely symbolic. But they show that the reformist agenda is at least firmly on the table.
http://jlne.ws/HfZWAg

Canada To Launch Its Own Version Of BitCoin Called MintChip
Fast Company Magazine
Last week, Canada's finance ministry announced the country would soon no longer be distributing the country's one-cent piece, effectively killing the penny. Now, in yet another sign that money is transitioning away from physical currency, the Royal Canadian Mint, the government-owned corporation that produces Canada's coinage, is set to launch MintChip, a digital form of currency that enables ...
http://jlne.ws/HZslxS

***JM: No, see, it's different.? It's Canadian.

Lead Stories

Euro breaches Swiss franc floor
By David Keohane - Financial Times
The euro fell sharply against the Swiss franc on Thursday morning to breach the floor of SFr1.20 established by the Swiss National Bank in September for the first time.
http://jlne.ws/HZsj9f

SNB intervenes in FX market to defend the franc's cap agianst the euro
International Business Times
Foreign Exchange traders said the Swiss National Bank intervened today through buying euros to defend its cap against the franc at 1.20 after the drop in the EUR/CHF pair on Thursday to the lowest level in 7-month to touch a low of 1.1996, where it rebounded after the intervention to trade around 1.
http://jlne.ws/HZsly0

Idea for a joint Aussie-Kiwi dollar makes the rounds again
GlobalPost
The productivity commissions of Australia and New Zealand have again floated the idea of a single currency for Aussies and Kiwis. read more
http://jlne.ws/HZsly4

Regulatory News

Foreign Exchange Fund Promoter Sentenced on Tax Charges
Accounting Today
One of the promoters of a bogus foreign currency exchange investment fund that effectively operated as a Ponzi scheme has been sentenced to nearly two years in jail on tax charges.
http://jlne.ws/HZslya

People

The 23-Year-Old Trader Famous For Spending $300k On Booze At A Club Was Just Arrested
Business Insider
A 23-year-old self-proclaimed currency trading expert who received a wave of publicity after reportedly spending ?125,000 on a single bottle of champagne, has been arrested by City regulators investigating suspected unauthorized trading.
http://jlne.ws/HZslOq

***JM: Not really newsworthy, I guess, but folks made a big fuss about this guy a few months back...

Central Banks

Japan Upper House Rejects BOJ Nominee
By TAKASHI NAKAMICHI
The upper house of Japan's parliament on Thursday voted down the government's candidate for the central bank's interest-rate-setting policy board, looking instead for someone more supportive of further monetary easing.
http://jlne.ws/HfZQbX

Credit Rating Competition Worries EU Central Bank
CNBC
Forcing bond issuers to switch credit rating agencies risks giving the raters an incentive to offer more flattering opinions to get business, the European Central Bank said on Wednesday.
http://jlne.ws/HZslOB

Technology

MetaTrader 5 Trading Platform Certified on GBOT
ThomasNet
MetaQuotes Software Corp. is glad to announce the successful certification of its MetaTrader 5 Trading Platform on the Global Board Of Trade (GBOT), the first international multi-asset Exchange in Mauritius. The platform has met all the technical requirements specified by GBOT and MetaQuotes has been granted ISV (independent software vendor) status by the exchange.
http://jlne.ws/HfZWQT

FXCM Trading Station Mobile for iPad and Android Tablets
Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance
FXCM Inc., announced today that is has fully launched its flagship retail forex platform, Trading Station, for iPad and Android tablets.
http://jlne.ws/HZsm50

Markets and Price Risk

[Video] Dollar `Good Buy' Against Euro, Yen, Robinson Says
Bloomberg
Paul Robinson, global head of foreign-exchange research at Barclays Plc, talks about the outlook for currencies. He speaks with Maryam Nemazee on Bloomberg Television's "The Pulse."
http://jlne.ws/HZsm56

Taiwan Dollar Drops Most in Almost Four Weeks on Tax Concerns
Bloomberg
Taiwan's dollar fell the most in almost four weeks and government bonds rose after the stock exchange signaled plans to impose a capital-gains tax on share transactions.
http://jlne.ws/HZsmlv

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