Structured products
RDR 'to fuel ETF boom'
The FSA's plans to overhaul regulations governing investment advice will spark a boom in the use of ETFs in the UK, according to BlackRock.
Hawkish BIS warns on dangers of ultra-low rates
Bank for International Settlements says degree of slack likely to be smaller than suggested by output gap models
US regulatory changes weigh on consumer ABS
Analysts declare Talf a success but say consumer ABS growth could be hampered by regulatory and accounting uncertainty
UK ETF investors abandoning FTSE 100 in favour of global indexes
The balance of UK investments in ETFs has shifted from the FTSE 100 index towards ETFs based on the S&P 500, MSCI Emerging Markets and Japan in the first quarter of 2010.
Execs would not be surpised if Eurozone shrinks, report claims
RBC Capital Markets survey say Greece most likely country to leave the eurozone.
Citi strengthens emerging markets equity derivatives team
Citi has added four new hires to its CEEMEA operations as its equity derivatives platform pushes into emerging markets.
Central banks’ holdings of US agency debt rise on dollar demand
Fed data show official-sector holdings of US agency securities rose for a 12th straight week; auction for seven-year US Treasury bills displayed growing demand for dollar denominated assets
FDIC will apply lower deposit limits to products in circulation
If the US congress votes to lower the deposit insurance limit to $100,000, then that figure will count for products currently in circulation, says the FDIC
Petrone rejoins Citi as head of capital markets
Citi Private Bank in New York has named Thomas Petrone as head of capital markets, with responsibility for the bank's ultra-high-net-worth clients
BNP Paribas snares Quentin Renaud from SocGen for MTNs and structured products
BNP Paribas has added Quentin Renaud to its London-based global MTN trading desk
FTSE indexes track firms' carbon exposure risk
Two new carbon indexes will enable investors to make investment decisions based on how carbon reduction schemes affect company earnings
RBC offers exposure to BP through structured products
Royal Bank of Canada has issued a new reverse convertible based on BP. The oil company's shares have risen in the US market in recent trading despite hitting a 13-year low on the London Stock Exchange
Capital gains tax reprieve cheers investors amid budget gloom
The less-than-expected increase in capital gains tax announced by UK chancellor George Osborne means structured products retain their tax-efficient status
Factors on demand
Attilio Meucci introduces a multi-asset-class return decomposition framework that extends beyond the standard systematic-plus-idiosyncratic approach. This framework, which rests on the conditional link between flexible bottom-up estimation factor models…
US wrap: Eurostoxx 50 proves popular
The European benchmark index continues to feature in this month's issuance
China and the renminbi: A Risk.net article collection
The recent financial crisis in the west has presented China with a range of challenges as well as opportunities.
High-net-worth investment in structured products set to rise
The latest Capgemini/Merrill Lynch World Wealth Report predicts greater investment in structured products on the back of a recovery in high-net-worth investors' finances
Sovereign debt and CDSs: a collection of articles from Risk.net
The world is watching nervously as sovereign debt is rocked by fiscal and economic crises in the eurozone.
Chris Lee reappears at Deutsche Bank as head of GMIP and db-X, Asia
Deutsche Bank has hired Chris Lee as head of structured products for Asia, just a few months after he left a similar position at UBS
Nasdaq launches two sharia indexes
Nasdaq has released its first sharia-compliant indexes, based on the Nasdaq 100 and OMX Stockholm Benchmark indexes
UK Wrap: Growth and income products proliferate despite rising volatility
Growth and income plans were by far the most popular style of product over the past three weeks, thereby disproving the previous UK wrap prediction that autocall products would increase in popularity