Standard Chartered bolsters Asian forex team

Standard Chartered has hired Fu Qing from ABN Amro to head its foreign exchange trading business in Shanghai. Fu, who started with Standard Chartered on January 4, had previously worked for ABN Amro in Shanghai, where he was assistant vice-president of FX trading and reported to Kenneth Poon, head of foreign exchange markets.

The new hire was made to support Standard Chartered’s growing renminbi business. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) opened the country’s spot foreign exchange market to over-the-counter trades on January 4, and Standard Chartered is among 13 market-makers designated to provide liquidity for the renminbi. Dealers plan to build an OTC derivatives market once the cash market is well established.

Meanwhile, Standard Chartered relocated David Mann, FX strategist to Hong Kong from London in November. Mann’s role and reporting line to Callum Henderson, head of FX strategy based in Singapore, remain unchanged. Mann’s role will involve covering the South and East Asian currency markets in addition to major currencies. He will also work closely with regional economists to construct proprietary models such as the currency barometers. Mann teamed up with Mumbai-based economist Shuchita Mehta to create an Indian rupee currency barometer in the first week of January. The barometer will serve as a key indicator of pressure on the rupee using measures of competitiveness, sustainability and domestic conditions. “We are trying to construct a single index that measures the pressure on the currency,” said Mann. “We combine a selection of components that are tailored to that particular currency. The choice of components is influenced by findings from academic studies as well as our own on-the-ground experience.” Previously, Standard Chartered had created similar barometers for the Chinese renminbi, Malaysian ringgit and CFA franc, a common currency used in 14 African countries.