Derivs - People and Markets

The Chicago Board Options Exchange has appointed John Deters, an ex-v.p. in the Financial Institutions Group in investment banking at Barclays, as its chief strategy officer and head of corporate initiatives in Chicago.

Natixis is expanding its financial institution investor coverage in the Asia Pacific, hiring Daniel Yap from Credit Industriel et Commercial in Singapore.

Société Générale has created a new Asia-focused credit sales team, hiring four officials and promoting Pierre Trecourt, the former head of fixed income and institutions in the firm’s cross asset solutions business, to lead the unit.

South Korean trusts and discretionary investment managers will be permitted to engage in trading of foreign currency-denominated derivatives and derivative-linked securities next year.

The Korea Exchange has delayed the launch of its over-the-counter clearinghouse until March 3, 2014 at the behest of foreign investment firms.

Leith Assouad, an ex-senior portfolio manager at Brevan Howard, has rejoined Citigroup in a senior equity derivatives trading role in London.

IntercontinentalExchange and CME Group have both had trade repositories approved under the European Markets Infrastructure Regulation by the European Securities and Markets Authority, allowing them to start accepting clients ahead of mandatory trade reporting on Feb. 12, 2014.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has issued a no-action letter providing relief to non-U.S. swap dealers from certain transaction-level requirements under the Commodity Exchange act.

Retail structured product issuers in India are struggling with regulations in the country that have led to the minimum investment amount tripling, effectively shutting down the market.

The Asia Pacific Regional Committee of the International Organization of Securities Commissions has written to Michel Barnier, European Commissioner for internal market and services in Brussels, warning that derivatives trading could dry up in Asia if central counterparties there are not granted a six-month extension to complete equivalence assessments that allow them to be recognized as qualifying CCPs under European Markets Infrastructure Regulation.

The European Commission has published a legislative proposal for a regulation on financial benchmarks. The proposed Regulation aims to address concerns about the integrity and accuracy of benchmarks by regulating administrators of benchmarks, contributors to benchmarks and benchmark users. The Regulation will also prohibit the use in the E.U. of unauthorised benchmarks, including benchmarks prepared by unregistered non-E.U. administrators from non-equivalent jurisdictions.

Standard Chartered has hired two Citigroup officials to head its newly created services team, which is focused on helping clients navigate the current challenges in the over-the-counter derivatives market.