Derivs - Credit

Bank Of America is hiring two more officials for its London credit derivatives team—moves that come after it has added 10 staffers to its credit trading and sales team over the last 18 months.

Sorin Capital Management has hired Matt Chasin, a former Bear Stearns senior managing director, to be its new chief operating officer.

The strength of the U.S. dollar and the falling price of oil have pushed European credit protection spreads tighter this week, said London traders.

The Clearing Corp. is moving closer to establishing a centralized platform for clearing over-the-counter credit default swaps, after initial tests conducted since July 4 have proved positive.

Japanese credit default swap spreads have shown consistent signs of tightening over the last few weeks.

The number of premiums being paid upfront on credit default swaps in Europe and North America has jumped dramatically over the last 12 months.

Monolines will have to adhere to strict reporting requirements for credit default swaps and collateralized debt obligations of asset-backed securities under statutory changes being crafted by the New York State Insurance Department.

Jeff Kushner, a managing director at BlueMountain Capital Management and one of the founding fathers of the U.S. loan-only credit default swap market, is heading to London to run the $4.8 billion hedge fund’s City desk.

European banks were on the radar of single name credit default swap traders this week, with the market eager for news to drive spreads in any direction.

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association is considering forming a working group to tackle buysider worries about its so-called close-out amount approach for early contract termination with a defaulted counterparty.

Credit strategists at SG Corporate & Investment Banking are tipping credit default swap spreads on financials to come in during the fourth quarter.

The cost of credit protection on U.K. fashion retailer Next remained roughly unchanged following the release of second-quarter results which showed less of a revenue slump than analysts had predicted.