Derivs - People and Markets

Dealers have formed a new working group to help boost flows in the contingent credit default swaps market. The group, comprising 23 dealer-only members of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, met Jan. 19.

A coalition of major players in the over-the-counter derivatives market have agreed to a request from U.S and international regulators to define what constitutes a standardized OTC contract for each asset class.

The German government and its banking regulator Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht, or BaFin, look set to cap compensation for traders and other staffers responsible for taking risks on behalf of financial firms.

Clariden Leu, the structured products subsidiary of Credit Suisse, yesterday rolled out EUR67 million (USD94 million) in multi-barrier reverse convertibles targeted at retail and institutional investors.

A number of banks have been signing agreements to kick-start the distribution of offshore structured retail products back into Taiwan.

The Obama administration’s proposal to rein in proprietary trading has predictably drawn fire from industry watchers. At issue is how to distinguish market making for clients from excessive risk-taking using proprietary capital.

Third-party distributor Incapital is marketing structured certificates of deposit linked to a basket of U.S. stocks and backed by JPMorgan. The CDs, which Incapital distributes to retail brokers, will be issued on Friday.

Lucas Newbill, a former v.p. in exotic equity derivatives sales at Société Genéralé, has joined New York broker-dealer WJB Capital Group as a v.p in sales/trading.

Wayne Smith, deputy head of markets and investment firms at L’Autorité des Marchés Financiers, and other European regulators are calling on the European Securities and Markets Authority to oversee trade repositories.

Flows of accumulator products in Asia are set to take off thanks to a new pricing trend sweeping the market and retail investors’ appetite returning following the Lehman Brothers-linked minibond debacle.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s new structured products unit is kicking off a wide-ranging search for fraud in the over-the-counter derivatives market, Kenneth Lench, the unit chief, told Derivatives Week.

BBVA has hired Eugene Lee to head its equity derivatives and cash sales business in Asia Pacific.