Derivs - Equity

Jay Elkins, head of delta one sales for the Americas at UBS in New York, has left.

Knock-in, knock-out structured products linked to the Nikkei and single Japanese stocks are being snapped up as Japan’s equity market rebounds sharply.

Thomas Jarck, managing director and head of U.S. index flow trading in global equity derivatives at Deutsche Bank in New York, has left the firm.

EFG Financial Products is to expand its white labeling structured products business this year. The move is on the back of its initial public offering in Q4 that saw EFG International reduce its stake in the investor products provider from around 58% to around 25%, setting the structured products provider as a more standalone operation from its global private banking parent.

Investors in Asia are buying volatility via upside calls on U.S. and Chinese stocks as sentiment improves in the U.S. and Asian markets.

Morgan Stanley has hired Yuichi Yamashita, an ex-v.p. and index arbitrage trader at Société Générale in Hong Kong.

Initial margin requirements in proposals from the Securities and Exchange Commission would curtail the use of uncleared swaps for hedging and challenge the resilience of the financial system.

UBS Securities is planning to offer onshore total return swaps referencing Chinese A-shares when the authorities greenlight the upcoming over-the-counter equity derivatives market.

The European Securities & Markets Authority published ‘EMIR: Frequently Asked Questions’ to “provide clarity” in relation to the European Market Infrastructure Regulation. This FAQ article covers the position prior to scrutiny of the EMIR Technical Standards by the European Parliament and Council of the E.U.”

Some dealers have started booking in London some derivatives that would normally have been booked in Hong Kong to avoid facing compliance problems under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.

Investors should consider buying dividend curve steepeners referencing the Nikkei in a bid to benefit from the Bank of Japan stimulus measures announced this week.

Scott Stickler, global head of UBS’ hedge fund prime brokerage service in New York, has left the firm.