Rabobank is building up an environmental financial products desk in London that will leverage the firm's presence in the food and agribusiness sectors. The desk is expected to include weather derivatives and greenhouse gas emissions credits. Calls to John Marlow, head of the environmental financial products desk in London, were not returned. Jan Dost, a spokesman in Utrecht, said the firm's plans are at too early a stage to discuss.
The Dutch bank's effort follows its hire last year of Peter Brewer, a weather derivatives structurer at Credit Lyonnais and prior to that, Aquila, in London. Brewer declined comment.
The move seems to reflect growing interest in the sector among trading shops and entities with natural exposure to the environmental financial products market--such as energy companies. Much of this interest is driven by the European Union's plans to have a tradable greenhouse gas emission credits market in place by year end, according to Louise Barkli, a manager at the International Emissions Trading Association in Geneva. Barkli, who recently joined IETA from broker ICAP Energy in Bergen, Norway, said "I expect to have my hands full," commenting on the high level of interest in emissions trading.
