Rising to the technology challenge

The structured product market is staggering to its feet after the financial crisis dealt it a near fatal blow. Simple payout structures, shorter terms and capital protection kept the market alive, then investors looked to structures with payouts linked to commodities, currencies or currency baskets, mixed baskets, inflation and interest rates. Clive Davidson reports on the second Structured Products annual survey of technology providers. Research was provided by Ana Mendes

In an environment of uncertainty and flux, technology becomes more important than ever. Structured product providers want to be able to bring new products to market as quickly as possible in order to meet clients’ evolving needs and to seize market opportunities as they appear. At the same time, both buy and sell sides want finer precision in pricing and greater transparency in the modelling process. They are also demanding more risk analysis and a greater ability to drill down into the risk