HVB Group, the investment banking arm of HypoVereinsbank, plans to hire two more staffers for its convertible sales and trading desk, which includes a convertible bond arbitrage operation. Inderjit Bedi, head of convertible distribution in London, said he is looking for a hedge fund salesman--who will sell credit derivatives--and a convertible bond and arbitrage trader with a hedge-fund client focus. After the last two hires are in place, the group will begin trading securities. In total the group will have five in sales, six in trading and two in research. The sales team targets hedge funds as well as fund managers, pension funds and insurance companies.
Bedi joined HVB from BNP Paribas, where he was the global head of convertible research in London, in May to build up its convertible distribution team. The firm has an origination desk headed by Manish Wadhwani and a convertible arbitrage proprietary book co-headed globally by Dillen Iyavoo and Wolfgang Klopfer.