Derivs - Equity

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s ban on short selling caused the flow of over-the-counter variance swaps to slow to a trickle today as banks began turning away hedge fund business due to uncertainty over the ruling.

Mickael Previ, head of flow equity derivative sales at Calyon, is joining French investment house Exane BNP Paribas in Paris.

Nomura Holdings is reportedly juicing compensation packages to get top performers at Lehman Brothers’ Asia-Pacific operation to stay on, after agreeing to buy the unit for an undisclosed sum.

Investment management boutique Blue Bell Private Wealth Management is putting its clients’ money in digital options that capture gains from volatility in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index.

London investors are urgently trying to understand the reporting requirements they are subject to under the Financial Services Authority’s ban on new or increased net short positions in publicly quoted financial companies.

Calyon's shake-up is continuing with the pending departure of its global head of equity derivatives Fabien Hajjar and the appointment of his deputy, Christophe Leymarie, to the role.

Singapore-headquartered recruiter Sumeria Search is set to open for business in Hong Kong on Oct. 1 under the banner Sumeria Search (HK) Ltd.

A Securities and Exchange Commission regulation that as of 12.01a.m. will disallow naked short selling is expected to have severe implications for over-the-counter equity derivative market, by forcing the business into the hands of fewer players.

Barclays Capital is seeing retail client interest in principal-protected absolute return notes that have an underlying double barrier straddle.

Implied volatility in the equity derivatives markets will continue to trade at inflamed levels as investors unnerved by the collapse of Lehman Brothers and takeover of Merrill Lynch will focus on market functions rather than underlying fundamentals, according to JPMorgan.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has hired Linklaters partner Simon Firth to help unravel Lehman Brothers’ complex derivatives book.

Dealers holding over-the-counter equity derivative contracts on Lehman Brothers Holdings appear to be better off with the bank filing for bankruptcy than they would have been if it had been rendered insolvent.