BlueCrest Capital Management, has nabbed two more senior Bank of America interest rate staffers. Peter McConnon, head of the proprietary interest rates trading desk at BofA in London, and David Abbou, a trader, recently joined the hedge fund. Bluecrest is the ninth largest hedge fund manager in Europe with some USD3 billion under management according to DW's sister magazine Alpha. The duo will join the previous head of BofA's prop desk, Rob Kitchen, and the former head of interest rate trading, Neil Mason (DW, 3/17/03). McConnon confirmed the move, but declined further comment and Abbou could not be reached.
Shabaz Rasool, a trader on the prop desk, is also leaving BofA, and will join Citigroup in a similar role. These departures leave BofA's five-strong prop group with just a junior trader and an analyst, according to Rhiannedd Brooke, spokeswoman at BofA, who said the bank is in the process of hiring replacements and intends to expand the group. The team reported to Ashwin Kumar, European head of strategic trading in London, who referred calls to Brooke.