Derivs - People and Markets

BNP Paribas has slashed its bonus pool for 2011 by 50% after pretax profit at corporate and investment banking plunged 40% in the fourth quarter.

Malaysia’s CIMB Group Holdings is said to be in talks with Royal Bank of Scotland to acquire its Asian equities and investment-banking units

ING Investment Management has hired Patrick Chia as head of fixed income for Asia.

Société Générale reduced risk-weighted assets in corporate and investment banking by 13% last year by dumping EUR16.1 billion (USD21 billion) of legacy assets, including a EUR476 million (USD620.7 million) write-down in the fourth quarter from positions on U.S. residential mortgage-backed collateralized debt obligations.

UBS is said to have suspended several traders, including some of its most senior ones, amid an investigation into alleged collusion to influence the London interbank offer rate and its equivalents in Europe and Asia, including Yvan Ducrot, co-head of its rates business, and Holger Seger, global head of short-term interest rates trading.

Macquarie has expanded its North American futures business with operations in Canada.

Royal Bank of Scotland has named Andrew Chick, head of debt capital markets and infrastructure, to succeed Stephen Williams as head of RBS’ operations in Australia.

MarketAxess has appointed Robert Hammond as head of sales and dealer relationship management for Europe and the Middle East.

Tradeweb has debuted a multi-dealer-to-customer trading platform for fx options, its fourth derivatives marketplace following the launch of platforms for interest rate and credit default swaps in 2005, and equity derivatives in 2010.

Moody’s Investors Service has placed six major global banks on review for possible downgrade because of new economic and regulatory challenges that could have a negative impact on their profits and future growth.

Blake Schmidt, an executive director and interest rate options trader at Morgan Stanley in New York, has left the firm to join fixed income hedge fund Field Street Capital Management in a similar role.

CBOE Group has announced that it will be begin listing futures and options that track volatility indices on Brazilian stocks and crude oil on Feb. 21.