News
Merrill Lynch continues with forex hires
Merrill Lynch has continued its forex hiring spree with the hire of Rabobank’s former global forex head, Michele di Stefano.
Reid to head Willis' structured finance group in North America
Willis Structured Financial Solutions (WSFS), a division of Bermudan-based insurance broker Willis, has hired Diana Reid to head its North American operations.
Australian derivatives on the SFE now available in US
Two futures commission merchants, Carr Futures and Refco Group, will provide US-based customers with direct, electronic access to Sydney Futures Exchange (SFE) listed derivatives.
France Telecom debt protection cost soars following downgrade
The cost of five-year credit protection on France Telecom debt widened by 100 basis points (bp) today as rating agency Moody’s cut its credit rating to one notch above 'junk'. Five-year credit default swaps were priced at 600/650bp in heavy trading.
Totem widens equity derivative valuation service
Totem Market Valuations, the London-based over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives valuation specialist, is to expand its service to include floored cliquet options this month.
Algorithmics names EMEA and Asia-Pacific regional sales directors
Toronto-based risk management software developer, Algorithmics, has appointed Hugh Stewart as regional managing director of sales for Europe, the Middle-East and Africa, and Graham Nyman as regional managing director ofsales and professional services for…
Lehman appoints European equity derivatives head
Lehman Brothers has hired Neil McDonald to head up its European equity derivatives flow trading business. McDonald joins from Morgan Stanley where he worked for five years as a senior equity derivatives trader.
Credit markets update: financial sector spreads widen in heavy trading
Credit default swap spreads for the financial sector in Europe generally widened this week in relatively heavy trading, as equity market falls and concerns over the financial sector’s overall credit strength caused nervousness among investors.
Wells Fargo to use AI to combat op risk
Wells Fargo, the San Francisco-based banking and financial services company, has bought an automated anti-money laundering software solution from IBM and Searchspace, a specialist software vendor, that will use artificial intelligence to monitor every…
Egar Technology launches web tool for equity options trading
Egar Technology, a New York-based supplier of trading and risk management systems, has released Egar Dispersion ASP, a web-based version of Egar Dispersion, an analytical tool for equity cash and options traders.
SG to enter structured bond business in South Korea
SG, the investment banking arm of France's Société Générale, plans to start offering structured bonds in South Korea by the second half of this year to cater for the growing demand for yield enhancing structures in the country, according to an official…
Hong Kong Exchange to allow more derivatives listings
The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong, a unit of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEx), said it is changing its main board listing rules from July 1 to allow more derivatives products, such as equity-linked instruments (ELIs), to be listed on the…
Japan credit market update: technology sector spreads hit by Nasdaq slump
Credit default swap spreads on Japanese technology names were wider this week, in part due to the decline in the technology-heavy Nasdaq equity market in the US but also due to a technical correction caused by range-bound trading, dealers said.
Commerzbank boosts credit trading division
Commerzbank Securities, the investment banking division of Commerzbank, has moved Kristian Sharp to head its North American credit trading division and made two new hires.
Standard Chartered makes investment in Cognotec
Cognotec, a Dublin-based foreign exchange and money market e-trading system provider, said it has secured a $14.5 million investment, two-thirds of which will be provided by FinVentures, the private equity arm of Standard Chartered Bank. The rest will…
Barep and JP Morgan close $215 million emerging market CDO
Paris-based alternative investment fund Barep Asset Management, a wholly-owned unit of French banking group Société Générale and JP Morgan Securities, has closed a $216.6 million collateralised debt obligation (CDO) backed by a revolving pool of US…
Dynegy ceases online energy trading
Houston-based energy company Dynegy has halted trading on Dynegy Direct, its online trading platform.
Increased regulation for OTC commodities is unnecessary, claims Isda
Increased regulation for the over-the-counter (OTC) commodity derivatives market designed to protect investors is unnecessary, according to the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (Isda). The European Commission is proposing regulation of…
S&P set to change BT debt outlook to stable from negative, says BT employee
Rating agency Standard & Poor’s is set to raise British Telecom’s (BT's) A- rating from ‘negative outlook’ to ‘stable outlook’, said a senior BT employee late yesterday.
ABN Amro hires head of FX option sales in Singapore
Dutch bank ABN Amro has hired Tan Huilin as head of foreign exchange options sales in Singapore.
DrKW hires Kobashi in Tokyo to offer risk management services to pensions funds
Germany’s Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein (DrKW) has hired Yoshikazu Kobashi from Morgan Stanley Japan to oversee the bank’s corporates and pensions marketing in Japan. Kobashi’s team will offer risk management solutions to corporates and pensions,…
KDB sets up credit derivatives desk in Seoul
The Korea Development Bank (KDB) has established a credit derivatives desk following an internal reorganisation of the bank's derivatives operations and in response to the growing credit derivatives market in the country, said Hae-Geun Chung, head of the…
Deutsche hires European head for structured capital markets
Deutsche Bank has hired Matt Press as managing director and European head of structured capital markets within its global markets unit. The hire is a newly created position, said a Deutsche spokeswoman.
Credit Markets Update: bleak market sentiment and TMT woes drive spreads
European credit default swap spreads have continued to follow the equity market’s lead this week, tightening on Monday but widening again today. The volatile technology, media and telecoms sector set the tone for the wider market.