Nesbitt Burns raids Commerzbank for US start-up

BMO Nesbitt Burns, the Toronto-based investment banking subsidiary of Bank of Montreal, has expanded its equity derivatives operations into the US market by poaching six of Commerzbank’s equity derivatives team.

Steven Lau will head Nesbitt Burns’ new US team, becoming managing director of US equity derivatives. Lau was previously head of index arbitrage, statistical arbitrage and programme trading for Commerzbank. Joining him in the move from the German investment bank are Timothy Tien, James Pasquale, Jinsong Wang, Wenjie Peng and Adam Schwartz. All five become vice-presidents of US equity derivatives.

The new team joins an existing three-person Toronto-based equity derivatives group. “We are the overall market share leader for listed equity derivatives products in Canada for both clients and on a proprietary basis,” claimed Eric Tripp, vice-chair of the equity division at Nesbitt Burns in Toronto. “Now we are expanding into the United States as part of a strategic goal to continue to build our proprietary platform.”

Lau will report to Patrick Cronin and Gino Martone, both executive managing directors of equity derivatives in Toronto.