Derivs - People and Markets

Regulatory proposals covering over-the-counter derivatives will bring significant costs to end users, while rules surrounding reporting requirements and collateral remain unclear and need further clarification, according to Joel Kim, head of fixed income, Asia Pacific, at BlackRock.

Inconsistent and conflicting final rules for over-the-counter derivatives between the U.S. and Europe cannot be ruled out, according to Ng Nam Sin, assistant managing director in the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s development group.

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association has published a confirmation for a market agreed coupon contract to provide an additional option for market participants that wish to use over-the-counter interest rate swaps with common, pre-agreed terms.

Babak Eftekhari, head of emerging markets fx options trading and co-head of EM fx spot trading at Goldman Sachs in London, has left the firm.

Joseph Vona, U.S. dollar interest rates options trader at BNP Paribas in New York, has left the bank.

Annual turnover in Asia’s over-the-counter derivatives markets grew 2.2% a year between 2008 and 2012, with annual turnover reaching USD186 trillion last year, according to the International Swaps and Derivatives Association.

A lack of progress and co-ordination in developing cross-border rules is fragmenting the over-the-counter derivatives markets, and will in turn dampen liquidity, investment and growth, according to a letter from numerous Finance Ministers addressed to the U.S. Treasury and other U.S. regulators.

Standard Chartered has hired Petter Sternby, the ex-head of the financial institutions group Asia ex-Japan at Nomura in Hong Kong, as head of Southeast Asia financial institutions strategic coverage in Singapore.

Peter Tierney, former coo Asia at NYSE Technologies in Singapore, has joined the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.

Keiran Ramsay, head of Australian dollar rates trading at the Royal Bank of Scotland in Sydney, has left the firm.

DW: Let’s start by discussing proposals for a minimum of five RFQs and look in more detail at the potential scenarios in terms of final rules surrounding SEFs—how would they work?

Mark Webster, managing director and head of fx sales at the Royal Bank of Scotland in London, is set to join Standard Chartered as global head of fx sales in Singapore.