Barclays Capital is launching an independent onshore fund derivatives platform in the next couple weeks and will add three to its New York-based structured products sales team, which focuses on equity and fund derivatives, by the end of next month.
The new Delaware platform will be a trust structure supporting hedge funds, funds of funds and other funds such as mutual fund baskets. It will allow investors to develop a range of structured products and derivatives, an official said. Principal protected notes and products relating to loans, options, total return swaps, leverage certificates and share class financing also form part of the product mix. The official explained the independent rather than subsidiary nature means Barclays will not bear the administrative burden. Rather, the bank's pre-selected third-party administrators and custodians deal with back office concerns. An offshore version called Panacea has been running from the Cayman Islands for about two years.
The onshore platform is one in a series of leveraging tools being developed by a team led by Philippe El-Asmar, head of investor solutions for the Americas in New York. Barclays hired El-Asmar in March to set up a U.S.-based fund and equity-linked instrument team (DW, 3/29), which grew to eight from two in March, and will expand to 11 in the coming months, the official said. El-Asmar confirmed the hires and the fund platform's launch but declined further comment.
