Derivs - Equity

Dresdner Kleinwort equity derivatives structuring director Sebastien Bossu is out the door.

Lehman Brothers London-based fund derivatives staffer Michael Samaha has left the firm.

Some investors are looking to sell variance on equity indices and single financial stocks, with officials saying trading in the often illiquid variance swap market has been picking up as volatility decreases.

Angus Hui, marketing director for equity and fund derivatives at Calyon in Hong Kong, has left the firm.

Senior equity derivatives flow salesman Yannick Mallegol, snaffled from SG Corporate & Investment Banking by Credit Suisse early this year, is no longer joining the Swiss bank.

Barclays Capital is looking to expand its Latin American equity derivatives offering, as well as its North American exotics trading capabilities, by hiring additional traders to cover these areas.

Banco Stantander has replaced William Lyons, former head of globaly equity derivatives trading, with an internal hire.

Last week saw a swathe of retail note issuance across a wide range of asset classes.

San Francisco-based Union Bank of California is readying the launch of equity-linked structured investments, which it will sell to its high-net-worth investors.

Investment banks are slowing complex trading and spending millions to clean up messy back offices in the wake of the Jérôme Kerviel affair, City consultants say.

Equity derivatives structurer Laure Gendron has left Morgan Stanley in London and is expected to resurface at Credit Suisse.

Funds of hedge funds in Asia are searching out volatility plays as both investments and hedges--but a lack of volatility-focused funds in the region has them looking at increasingly sophisticated trading strategies.