Awards

Davis Polk and Wardwell’s role alongside the growth in structured equity finance transactions in the US during the last year, as well as its work in helping European and Asian clients trade equity derivatives products in the US, was key to the firm winning Global Capital’s US Law Firm Of The Year award.

Clients are increasingly turning to technology providers for pre-trade risk management under pressure to comply with the new regulatory environment. SunGard, a global software solutions company, has noted an increase in the number of clients seeking third-party management of pre-trade risk on its Valdi platform. SunGard’s commitment to providing innovative pre-trade software to the buy- and sell-side to help them meet these new demands is one reason why they were awarded this year’s GlobalCapital Americas Technology Provider of the Year.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s position in being a leading liquidity provider in CDS trading in the Americas, the innovation it offers in structured solutions, in addition to the positive feedback it received from buysiders for its credit research, were the reasons why the firm won the Global Capital Derivatives Americas Credit Derivatives House of the Year award.

CIBC’s continued investment in derivatives professionals and technology have given it staying power in the Canadian derivatives market. Its expansion in cross-asset trading and structuring in New York and Canada helped it clinch this year’s Global Capital Derivatives Canada House of the Year award.

Citigroup has made the new over-the-counter derivative clearing regime in the US a top priority over the last 12 months, embracing the new system with investments in technology and personnel. The firm’s investments have started paying dividends, with market participants from the sellside and buyside taking note, helping the firm secure this year’s GlobalCapital Derivatives Americas Clearing Bank of 2014 award.

Consistent outperformance in the use of cross-asset derivatives has set Citadel apart from other hedge funds over the last 12 months. The firm's performance in global markets was lauded by sellside officials and institutional investors this year, who noted Citadel outperformed other funds using derivatives in both vanilla and exotic strategies. This helped Citadel win the 2014 GlobalCapital Derivatives US Hedge Fund Of The Year award.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch has dedicated significant time and resources over the past 12 months to developing the firm's infrastructure and technology, which has resulted in better pricing and increased liquidity in both vanilla and exotic options. This is one area that was praised by buyside firms and resulted in BAML being crowned FX Derivatives House of the Year at this year's GlobalCapital Americas Derivatives Awards.

UBS’ Neo platform has stood out in the market in providing clients with access to multiple swap execution facilities without clients needing to become a direct participant of a SEF; the first dealer to provide such SEF services in the new market structure. The platform gives clients access to greater liquidity, while reducing the legal burden that derivatives regulation has imposed on market participants. The innovative solution, coupled with the positive feedback from buyside market participants, is the reason why UBS Neo was crowned Electronic Trading Platform of the Year at the 2014 GlobalCapital Americas Derivatives Awards.

BM&FBOVESPA, Brazil’s sole bourse, has been at the forefront of developing liquidity in the listed derivatives market in Latin America. It has seen growth in many of its commodity futures contracts, such as coffee futures, while also continuing to innovate across other asset classes, with one example being the deployment of non-deliverable forwards last July. That helped the exchange win this year’s GlobalCapital Americas Derivatives Latin America Exchange of the Year.

Tradeweb has introduced more functionality in regard to streaming prices on its swap execution facility in order to provide market participants with quicker access to prices. This, among other areas of its product offering, is why Tradeweb received Global Capital’s SEF Platform Of The Year award as part of its Americas Derivatives Awards.

UBS’ structured product platform, Equity Investor, is an example of a unique tool enabling clients to design a product that can then be priced and traded instantaneously. The firm’s pricing, structuring and electronic capabilities resulted in it being crowned the 2014 Americas Structured Products House Of The Year by Global Capital.

S&P Dow Jones Indices’ recent push to become a fully-fledged player in the fixed income marketplace, in addition to its strong presence across other asset classes, was lauded by market participants. That drive the firm’s achievement in winning the 2014 Global Capital Americas Index Provider Of The Year award.