Chicago/London — The claim sounds dubious: the Vix, the index at the centre of the stock market’s wild gyrations over the past week, is somehow being manipulated. The allegation, made to federal authorities by an anonymous whistle-blower, captivated Wall Street on Tuesday, prompting both quick dismissals and more than a few raised eyebrows. Cboe Global Markets, the Chicago-based owner of the Vix, said the idea is preposterous. Many traders agree. Yet after the burst of volatility and the three swings of more than 1,000 points in the Dow Jones industrial average last week, some are asking the question: what if? The allegation has prompted second thoughts, in no small part because global finance has a record of trying to manipulate all sorts of things, including benchmarks for interest rates and currencies. What’s more, it’s not the first time someone has raised questions about whether the Vix is being gamed. "It’s always been an ongoing conversation," said Jim Strugger, a derivatives...
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