Derivs - Equity

Singapore Exchange on Monday revealed that it would replace its Nifty products with suitable successors by August to ensure that investors could maintain exposure to Indian markets.

Implied equity volatility on US stocks, measured by the CBOE’s VIX index, showed signs of cooling off on Wednesday and Thursday, after it dropped from 27 on Monday and Tuesday to 19.7 on Thursday.

The International Organization of Securities Commissions on Tuesday urged its members to “improve the practices” of firms offering complex derivatives to retail clients as it opened a consultation on the matter to the public.

Electronic platform provider NEX has found a compromise between MiFID II, the new set of European regulations which require transparency of trading, and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), an upcoming European regulation which requires corporations to protect individual private data.

After last week's equity and bond market sell-offs, investors are worried about the positive correlation between the two asset classes, leading to increased hedging with derivatives, according to an equity derivatives strategist.

Russian investment bank Renaissance Capital on Monday revealed that it had set up an algorithmic trading unit to take advantage of volatility in financial markets.

While market capitalisation weighted indices and portfolios have been incredibly popular in recent years, data show that their equally weighted brethren can have an edge with lower concentration risk and better performance.

The viability of short volatility strategies in derivatives markets was dealt a severe blow this week, after a historic spike in equity volatility torpedoed popular exchange traded notes. Costas Mourselas reports.

The Singapore Exchange has continued a healthy streak of sign-ups to its derivatives service this year, as it added a Chinese futures trading company to its membership.

Protecting retail investors is a laudable goal. But what they are protected from often seems arbitrary.

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) has committed to allowing trading of popular equity index options in its after-hours trading session, after similar futures contracts enjoyed success in a lengthier session.

An exchange traded note that rewards investors when equity volatility drops is being shuttered by Credit Suisse, after implied volatility on the S&P 500 exploded this week.