Derivs - People and Markets

National and European regulators would be given powers to unwind derivatives portfolios and slash payments due to creditors of major financial institutions deemed at risk of failure under plans being formulated by Members of the European Parliament.

The Securities and Exchange Commission should not bar the use of derivatives in funds, according to former Commissioner Paul Atkins.

The U.K. House of Lords today issued a report in response to regulatory developments at the E.U. Commission targeting over-the-counter derivatives. As first reported by Derivatives Week, the E.U. Sub-Committee A supports the European Commission’s stance on appointing the proposed European Securities and Markets Authority to regulate clearing houses.

Tsui Keng Ong, executive director and senior equity derivatives marketer for JPMorgan in Hong Kong, has opted to take a one-year sabbatical with the bank’s blessing.

BlueMountain Capital Management is set to launch two new credit funds.

BNP Paribas has hired Llywelyn ap Gwilym, a former structured credit trader at Commerzbank in London, as an asset-backed securities flow trader.

The U.K. Conservative Party will appoint permanent Treasury ministers to Brussels and every E.U. state to lobby the European Commission on over-the-counter derivatives legislation, if the party wins the British general election in May.

StormHarbour Partners, the boutique formed by ex-Citigroup trading executives Antonio Cacorino and Frederick Chapey, has opened for business in Hong Kong with 14 staffers on board.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to review the extent and nature of derivatives usage by mutual funds and exchange traded funds has created a sweet spot for those already holding an exemption to the Investment Company Act of 1940.

Citadel Securities has hired three senior equity derivatives salesmen in New York. Each joined earlier this month in a new role reporting to James Boyle and Brad Kurtzman, co-heads of equity derivatives trading.

The European Banking Federation has called on European lawmakers to focus on better policing of derivatives rather than slapping bans on products such as credit default swaps.

The illiquid nature of loans delivered into the auction to settle credit default swaps referencing Japanese lender Aiful on Thursday played a major role in raising the final result, credit analysts at Deutsche Bank believe.