Risk.net Buy-Side Awards 2016: call for entries

Submission details now available for November awards

RISK.net is now inviting entries for the Risk.net Buy-Side Awards 2016.

The deadline for submissions is 6pm GMT on September 5th. Interviews with short-listed firms will take place during September and October. The awards will be presented at a dinner on November 30th at the Sheraton Park Lane in London.

Please submit entries via email to [e-mail].

Guidelines for submissions are below and here.

All pitch documents and subsequent interviews with our editorial team relating to the awards will be treated as off the record.

There is no prescribed format and no minimum or maximum length for submissions. But they should describe the firm's approach in the relevant area, how the company has adapted to market and regulatory change, and how it has performed over the past year.

In particular, applicants must give specific examples of client/stakeholder problems, detailing how the firm addressed them, why specific solutions were chosen and setting out the benefits for the client/stakeholder. We are asking for client references (names, email addresses, phone numbers). Where relevant, client feedback will be one of the most important influences on the selection of winners.

Once again, entries close on September 5th. Please contact [e-mail] with any questions.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
There is no minimum or maximum length for submissions, but all submission should include case studies and examples of best practice or key deals. Submissions for advisory and product categories should include client references and contacts.

Details of the awards categories are as follows.

INDUSTRY AWARDS
These awards are given for best-practice in risk management. Submissions should outline risk and capital management processes, policies and systems, and describe any improvements made to the risk and capital management functions at the firm over the past year. Particularly important is how teams have responded to regulatory and market changes and how they have contributed to business strategy and performance.

• Insurer of the year
• Reinsurer of the year
• Pension scheme of the year
• Hedge fund of the year
• Fund of hedge funds of the year
• Asset manager of the year

Buy-side quant of the year
This award will be decided by RISK's technical editor and his team, based on market consultation.

Institutional investment product of the year
This award is given for an investment product that demonstrates innovation in meeting the investment and risk requirements of institutional investors.

Retail product of the year
This award is given for a product that applies innovative and creative structuring to meet the investment and risk requirements of retail customers. It could be an insurance product, a savings or an investment product, for example.

Innovation of the year
This award is given in recognition of an instance of particular innovation and is open to new technologies, new investment products, new risk management practices, specific deals, or relevant innovations of other types.

Outstanding contribution
This will be awarded to a person that has made a significant contribution to furthering the interests of the buy side in the derivatives/risk management industry. Nominations can be made by the candidates themselves, by colleagues or by employers/customers. Nominations should outline why the nominee should win the award and explain in detail the contribution they have made to the market.
 
BANK AWARDS
These awards are given to banks for their work providing risk management solutions to the buy side.

Submissions should include case studies detailing how the firm has best met the needs of clients in managing risk. Firms must include granular detail on performance. We will require evidence to back up claims.

We need client references, including names, phone numbers and email addresses. We will also want to meet with the relevant members of the submitting firm. There is no limit to the number of categories firms can make submissions in.

• Buy-side risk solutions house of the year
• Best bank – insurance solutions
• Best bank – pensions solutions
• Best bank – hedge funds
• Best bank – asset management
• Best securities servicing provider

Best firm, longevity risk transfer
The longevity risk award is open to firms taking on longevity risk in large-scale trades, including reinsurers, banks, bulk annuity providers or other company types.

ADVISORY AWARDS

Best consulting firm
This category is open to all consultants providing advice to buy-side institutions in connection with their risk and capital management. This includes actuarial, regulatory, investment and other advice.

Best law firm
This category is open to law firms advising buy-side firms on legal or regulatory matters relating to derivatives markets and risk management.

TECHNOLOGY AWARDS
These awards are given for specific products or product modules in the designated areas, provided by third-party technology vendors to the buy side. Submissions must include client references and specify how the product in question has been updated over the past year to meet the needs of customers.

• Best risk management technology product
• Best trading technology product
• Best performance attribution product
• Best collateral management product
• Best Solvency II product
• Best actuarial modelling product
• Best economic scenario generator
• Best asset-liability management product
• Best operational risk management product
• Best regulatory reporting product
• Best liquidity risk management product
• Best data management product