Risk magazine
OTC weather trades fall; exchange trades rise
The weather derivatives market is shifting from an over-the-counter market to an exchange-traded one, according to results from a 2004 Weather Risk Management Association (WRMA) survey.
Nymex fires opening shots for ICE
Nymex has made a $150 million cash bid for the Atlanta-based Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), and would also pay $67 million to shareholders of the International Petroleum Exchange (IPE), according to a senior Nymex official.
Nymex chief quits over pay cut
The decision by Bo Collins to resign as president of Nymex was triggered by the board cutting his compensation package, said a senior source at Nymex.
Fitch finds CDS participants should act before times of stress
Credit default swaps (CDS), although an efficient risk management tool, should not be used solely in reaction to times of greatest stress when many corporates are illiquid, said a Fitch Ratings special report, Liquidity in the credit default swap market:…
Entergy and Koch consider selling energy trading business
New Orleans-based Entergy Corporation and Wichita's Koch Industries today said they are considering selling their energy trading business Entergy-Koch Trading (EKT).
NRG Energy creates chief risk officer role
NRG Energy has hired Philip Chesson to fill the newly created role of chief risk officer.
Private equity group to acquire majority stake in Refco
Boston-based private equity group Thomas H Lee Partners (THL) will acquire a majority stake in Refco, a New York-based financial services firm involved in derivatives execution and clearing, as well as a provider of prime brokerage services for fixed…
Munich Re launches weather desk
Munich Re, the world's largest reinsurer, has established a New York-based weather derivatives desk in its Munich American Capital Markets division.
Icap to add trading functions to i-Swap
Faster-than-expected advances in electronic derivatives trading have forced inter-dealer broker Icap to step up plans to launch its own electronic swaps trading platform.
Citigroup restaffs Singapore forex sales
Citigroup has hired new staff to fill a void in its Singapore foreign exchange institutional sales team after three employees defected to Barclays Capital.
FX Concepts hires in options
FX Concepts, a New York-based currency manager, has hired two options specialists to enhance its quantitative research, foreign exchange options and non-directional strategies management.
Nymex president to quit
Bo Collins, president of The New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), will leave the exchange at the end of this month. Nymex said the decision not to renew his contract was made by "mutual agreement".
DrKW snares global head of credit hybrid trading
German investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein has hired Tong Lee from Gen Re Securities as managing director and global head of credit hybrid trading, a new role within the bank. He will take up his post in mid-June and will be based in London.
UBS creates combined credit trading group in Asia-Pacific
UBS has decided to combine its Asian, Australian and Japanese credit trading businesses into a single Asia-Pacific credit trading division. It has appointed Michael Halloran as co-head of the merged group.
Highland hires to support move into credit-sensitive structured products
Highland Financial Holdings, a $650 million hedge fund manager in New York, has hired Dean Smith as senior vice-president to oversee the fund's expansion to credit risk products.
BAAM creates CIO position
The Blackstone Group, a New York-based venture capital firm, has appointed Bruce Amlicke as senior managing director and to the newly created position of chief investment officer of Blackstone Alternative Asset Management (BAAM), the firm’s $9 billion…
Algo and Bloomberg release enhanced risk service
Toronto-based Algorithmics and Bloomberg released a new version of Algo Risk, a market and trading risk solution, at Algorithmics' annual user conference being held in Boston, Massachusetts this week.
HSBC builds MBS team
HSBC has hired two people for its new mortgage-backed securities (MBS) business following the appointment of six people for its asset-backed securities (ABS) group.
SG strengthens equity derivatives flow products sales
SG, the investment banking unit of France's Société Générale has made a number of appointments within its equity derivatives flow products sales team.
ABN Amro expands financial markets advisory business to Asia
ABN Amro has expanded its financial markets advisory department to Asia, with the appointment of a new Hong Kong-based team to provide advisory services on debt funding, risk management and ratings advisory to corporates and financial institutions around…
Barclays Capital builds up Asian business
Barclays Capital has been aggressively expanding its Asian business, with the hiring of senior staff across all asset classes.
Mooney quits Trafigura to launch Merrill fund of funds
David Mooney, formerly head of power and gas trading at Trafigura in London, has left the Swiss commodity trading house to join Merrill Lynch. Mooney will join Merrill in mid-June as a managing director, where he will be charged with evaluating commodity…
DTCC expands CDS matching service
The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has expanded it credit default swaps matching service to cover Asia-Pacific corporates and sovereigns, as well as a number of credit default swap indexes.
TXU and CSFB form energy trading company
Dallas-based TXU has entered into a joint partnership with Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) to create an independent entity to market and trade power, natural gas and other energy-related commodities in North America.