Derivs - FX

Stakeholders in a clearinghouse operating in Japan will require direct approval from the Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama if they wish to seek ownership of more than 20%, under proposals submitted by the Japanese Financial Services Authority.

Marcie Ball and David Coloretti, directors of fx hedge fund sales in Asia at Barclays Capital, have left the bank.

Options players have been taking opposite views on sterling this week against the U.S. dollar and the euro, after the U.K. general election was announced for May 6.

Société Générale is planning to hire an additional 500 people to its markets unit globally over the next 18 months.

CitiFirst, the structured products division of Citigroup, has noticed an increasing interest in instruments linked to domestic underlyings, particularly in Brazil.

European pension funds are considering stepped-up currency hedging strategies to tackle increased exposure to fx movements, according to a survey of 1,500 public and private funds across 11 countries conducted by Mercer Investing Consulting.

Royal Bank of Scotland is pushing calendar spread trades to position for what the bank is forecasting will be a gradual appreciation of the yuan against the U.S. dollar in six to 12 months time.

Currency options desks are preparing for a surge in one-week call options from hedge funds and corporates on the U.S. dollar against the yen. They anticipate U.S. non-farm payroll data on Friday will reveal the first positive job figures for the U.S. economy since the end of 2007.

BNP Paribas fx strategists are recommending a calendar spread on long-dated euro/U.S. dollar volatility. The trade involves buying a 20-year call on the euro against the dollar and selling a five-year call on the same underlying, both with at-the-money strikes.

Many investors, particularly macro hedge funds, have been buying calls and call spreads on the U.S. dollar against the yen today in light of a sign that a long-expected uptick in spot has arrived.

Andrew Bown, a senior fx options trader at Barclays Capital in London, has left the firm and is widely tipped to take up a similar position at Deutsche Bank.

Ian Donaldson, managing director and fixed income salesman for Goldman Sachs, has left the firm.