NIBA Journal

Insights, analysis, and updates from the National Introducing Brokers Association

July 9, 2011

Outlook for Copper: A case for higher prices?

OUTLOOK FOR COPPER: "COPPER - A CASE FOR HIGHER PRICES?": In terms of prices, the first-half of this year has fared far better than many were expecting.The broader economic climate has already shown signs of improvement and has surprised many analysts whom had not forecasted this occurrence until the 4Q. However, it appears that the market bulls had got ahead of the game in Copper as prices have seen five consecutive monthly closes higher, and we are presently sitting in view of making it six in a row. The question is where has this optimism come from when economists have been proclaiming doom-and-gloom from the demand-side perspective... A significant part of the stronger picture has been derived from the voracious appetite of China, the world's largest consumer of the metal. Copper imports into China have leapt to record levels as the State Reserve Bureau has increased its strategic stockpile buying....

Stand Apart From Your Competitors | Build Power with a Strong Brand

by Lida Citroën Principal | LIDA360, LLC Imagine you are a client looking to find an introducing broker. To you, there is no clear difference between one broker over another. How would you choose? Most likely, all things being equal, you would chose the least expensive one. After all, why would you pay more – all things being equal? In brand marketing, we call this a commodity sale: The consumer chooses based on price when there is no clear differentiation of perceived value. Is this how you want your brokerage clients to chose you? Is your value to your clients that you are the cheapest solution to their needs? Are all things created equal when choosing a broker? What is a personal brand? A brand is an emotional connection in the hearts of your clients and the audiences they influence. Branding helps companies (and individuals) identify their desired reputation. Your...

In the Future IBs and Financial Advisors Compete Head to Head

By Mark Melin | Author High Performance Managed Futures and division director at PFGBest. The growth in managed futures points to increased competition coming from the traditional Wall Street financial advisor. The question is: how can IBs manage this threat? The biggest weakness many financial advisors have when discussing managed futures is their lack of understanding the asset class. There are five key points advisors must understand in order to carry on an intelligent managed futures conversation, some of which was outlined when Northwestern University had its four hour educational course on the topic this March 19. IBs must understand these key points and communicate them properly. When facing challenges from the equity world it is important IBs employ the right tactics. The IB that succeeds against financial advisors may have these characteristics in common: 1. Understanding of Trading Strategies: Most financial advisors don’t understand the critical difference in strategies...

How will the Proposed Swaps Regulations Affect IBs?

Regulation of the OTC derivatives markets was a hallmark of the Dodd-Frank Act. While the swaps regulations will take time to implement, and may not necessarily impact Introducing Brokers in a direct manner, IBs should nonetheless pay attention to the swaps regulation drama for a couple of reasons. First, the CFTC’s focus on swaps means that their attention is not on other proposals, like Proposed Regulation 1.71. Secondly, as the swaps regulations begin to take form, there will be time and opportunity for IBs to modify their business models to capitalize on the new systems. Proposed Regulation 1.71 Proposed Regulation 1.71 has quickly taken a backseat to the swaps regulations. In broad terms the proposal would require FCMs and IBs to implement certain “Chinese Wall”-like procedures to ensure there are no conflicts of interest with respect to research and execution. While such a concept may work in the context of...

Chairman's Message | June 2011

Dear NIBA Members and Supports, Year 2011 marks the 20th Anniversary of the NIBA. Since 1991 we have held over 35 membership meetings. Every meeting is planned with input from our members, which includes suggestions for topics and speakers. The number one topic suggested is a discussion and update of CFTC and NFA rules and regulations. Most IBs and CTAs feel they get little, if any, advanced warning from their clearing FCMs and others when rules which affect their business are changed or enacted. Even those IBs and CTAs who regularly check the agencies’ websites, generally have to sort through numerous proposals which only apply to FCMs or hedge fund operators or other registration categories or processes. Rules, regulation and compliance issues are a part of every NIBA meeting. Year after year our IB, CTA and AP members say they rely on the NIBA twice-annual programs for easy-to-understand presentation and...

6 Reasons to Embrace Inbound Marketing

by Phil Donaldson and Candyce Edelen | PropelGrowth Phil Donaldson Email: pdonaldson@propelgrowth.com Twitter: @PhilDonaldsonNJ Phone: 212.812.3998 Candyce Edelen Email: cedelen@propelgrowth.com Twitter: @CandyceEdelen Phone: 212.738.9445, ext. 501 In today’s digital age, consumers and business people are looking to the Internet to find information to guide nearly every important decision they make. At the same time, their degree of patience for and trust in traditional advertising is plummeting. The statistics aren’t pretty. We found conflicting information about just how how bad it is, but suffice it to say, people generally don’t trust advertising. In his book “Marketing to the Social Web,” Larry Weber found that only 14% of people trust advertisements. The Alterian report “Your Brand: At Risk or Ready for Growth?,” found that only 5% surveyed trusted advertising and that a mere 8% trust what companies say about themselves. HubSpot recently published research findings that showed the ROI for traditional advertising...

Anticipating the USDA Acreage Report The 2011 Outlook for Corn, Soybeans and Wheat

When: Tuesday, June 28, 2011 at 2:00 p.m. CT Where: CME Group Visitor's Center Auditorium 141 W. Jackson, 5th floor Chicago, IL 60604 The current conditions in agricultural commodities have created much volatility in the grain markets. In anticipation of the June 30 USDA 2011 Acreage report, please join us in a discussion of the summer's grain prospects and the impact of the recent weather crises. The discussion will also include a trader's perspective on the new Weekly Grain Options, which provide opportunities to trade high impact events?such as USDA reports and weather conditions. Since their launch on May 23, Weekly Corn, Soybean and Wheat options have traded more than 40,000 contracts, including a record 7,080 the day before the June 9 USDA Crop Production report. Topics include: Perspectives on acreage Current weather trends 2011 yield potential and price outlook Capitalizing on opportunities with Weekly Grain Options Speakers: Tom Shuff...

Compliance Workshop for Forex IBs, CTAs and CPOs

Tuesday, June 28, 2011 NYMEX World Headquarters, New York City NFA will conduct a compliance workshop in New York on Tuesday, June 28 at the NYMEX building in New York. The workshop will focus on areas in which NFA Compliance staff has frequently found regulatory deficiencies, including registration issues, disclosure documents, recordkeeping, promotional material and anti-money laundering programs for IBs. For more information regarding details and registration, click here.

Learning to Make Trading Decisions with Imperfect Information

“A man with a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure.” that’s Segal’s Law. Successful trading comes from being able to make decisions with imperfect information. However, like the man with two watches, we often try to look for multiple indicators to confirm our decision before we make a trade. After all, we want as much going for us as possible. Yet, waiting for everything to be aligned in order to make a trade, means that you will most often be either wrong or late. By the time everybody agrees on anything, it is either wrong or it has already happened. As an example, let’s say we put 100 people in a field on a hot summer day with the sun beating down on them and not a cloud in the sky. Then, let’s ask all 100 people, if it is going to...

By NIBARead article

Focus on the Membership

June 14, 2011

4 min read

The Dow Corporation | Focus on the Membership June 2011

About the Firm: How did you get started? Do you provide additional services besides brokerage I’ve always had a focus in the energy markets. The Dow Energy Corp. was founded in 1986 as a GIB of Gelderman. After becoming an IIB, it merged with CitiBank in 1991 to form CitiBank Futures Group, the first US bank to clear third party futures and options. I founded The Dow Corporation in 1995 while a member of the NYMEX, and developed Dow Vector Analysis, a proprietary trading system. Currently, The Dow Corp. is structured as a vertical information and service company, introducing commercial energy business to eight FCMs. What are the biggest challenges your clients face today, and how do you help them? Globalization and creation of new markets at warp speed can create new challenges for clients. We put forth considerable effort to keep our clients abreast of these changes, while keeping...

By NIBARead article

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