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RBS adds in Italy and Germany
Luca Vari and Oliver Dietz have joined Royal Bank of Scotland Global Banking & Markets structured product and solutions sales team in Italy and Germany respectively. Both appointments are subject to the completion of FSA registration.
HK SFC suspends unlisted Lehman Brothers structured products
Lehman Brothers Asia has suspended the provision of secondary market quotes or liquidity for Lehman Brothers unlisted structured products “pending further announcement”, said the Hong Kong Securities & Futures Commission in a statement released after the…
Bank of America buys Merrill Lynch for $50 billion
Bank of America announced today it will acquire Merrill Lynch in a $50 billion all-stock deal, rounding off an explosive weekend on Wall Street.
Merrill offers weather boost
Merrill Lynch in Singapore has launched the Citrine All Weather Booster Notes, which are designed to offer exposure to the stock of five Singapore-based companies.
Deutsche hire Ye as head of rates trading in China
Deutsche Bank has appointed Charlie Ye as a managing director and head of global rates trading in China. Ye who is based in Shanghai is responsible for growing the German bank’s renminbi-denominated interest rate products suite, expanding the local…
US banks launch inflation-linked products
SunTrust has launched a new certificate of deposit (CD) linked to the consumer price index for US investors seeking shelter from rising inflation, which hit 5.6% in July 2008.
SuperDerivatives recruits derivatives systems implementation expert
SuperDerivatives, a derivatives solution provider, has appointed Zohar Hod as vice-president, Strategic Sales. Based in New York, Hod will be responsible for implementing the company’s multi-asset solutions to a range of clients in the global banking and…
Macquarie strengthens retail distribution in Australia
Macquarie Funds Group has appointed Irene Deutsch as Australian head of retail distribution in the retail structured products division. Deutsch, who has rejoined the Australian bank after two years, will be responsible for the distribution of structured…
Zurich launches latest Guaranteed Account
Zurich, the insurance-based financial services provider, has released the latest Guaranteed Capital Account in its series. The Zurich Guaranteed Account 20 offers 120% of any growth in the FTSE 100 index over the five and a half-year term and returns 100…
JP Morgan launches Confidence notes in Singapore
JP Morgan in Singapore has launched the JP Morgan AsiaConfidence Notes Series 3, which is designed to give exposure to the performance of four Asian equity markets comprising China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan.
Lyxor offers China volatility play
Lyxor Asset Management in Hong Kong has launched the China All Weather Guaranteed Fund, which is designed to provide exposure to the absolute performance of the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI).
SG Excels with ETFs
Société Générale Acceptance has launched the SG Excel Notes Series 37, which is designed to provide exposure to the economic development of China and Hong Kong through three ETFs.
Abbey launches Guaranteed Capital Plus and Guaranteed Growth
Abbey has launched its Guaranteed Capital Plus Plan issue 4 along with its latest Guaranteed Growth plan issue 17.
Calyon reduces equity derivatives risk profile in restructuring
Calyon will centre its business around structured finance, equities including brokerage and equity derivatives, and fixed income following the implementation of a restructuring plan that was explained at a briefing in Paris this afternoon. The…
Natixis snares hedge fund replication index licence
Natixis Investment Bank has obtained a licence to use the IndexIQ hedge fund replication index to create multiple structured investment products for institutional and retail investors across Europe and Asia.
Update: Merrill lists hedge basket inverse tracker certificate on DIFX Trax
Merrill Lynch has listed a 10-year Gulf Cooperation Council hedge basket inverse tracker certificate on DIFX TraX, the structured products platform of the Dubai International Financial Exchange.
Getting IT right
With voluntary carbon markets growing rapidly, registries are springing up to facilitate trade. Many companies, however, have not begun the crucial work of developing such internal systems. William J Scotti of Meradia Group offers some suggestions
The shape of things to come
As Australia gears up for its emissions trading scheme in 2010, Anthony Collins of the Australian Securities Exchange examines the country’s emissions profile and looks at how the financial markets supporting the scheme are likely to evolve
Changing times at Centrica Energy
Constantine Vaitsas, Atlas transformation director at CentricaEnergy, describes how his company updated its tradingand risk management systems to meet the challenges of therapidly-shifting energy markets
The power of now
A real-time position reporting system is becoming an important tool for large energy trading firms. Sirius Solutions’ Brian Shydlo introduces the concepts, challenges and techniques associated with designing and implementing an RTP solution
The outlook for US gas
US natural gas prices, which have fallen by 30% recently, are expected to stabilise at current levels or rise from here, analysts say. Longer term, unconventional reserves could dampen prices. William Rhode reports
Valid Assumptions Required: backtesting
Given the large number of assumptions made in calculating a value-at-risk, how can we have confidence in the quality of the resulting calculation? Brett Humphreys looks at using backtesting to evaluate quality.