Derivs - People and Markets

Sydney-based boutique Instreet Investment has re-issued an equity-linked product to retail investors in Australia after its initial offering saw more interest than expected.

Lawyers are seeing a surge in requests for reviews of arbitration clauses that have been tacked onto over-the-counter derivative contracts.

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association is expected to complete its Wind Event Swap Confirmation documentation by month end, enabling users to speculate or hedge against losses from natural catastrophes.

Chris Innes, the former head of equity derivative sales and trading at Bank of America, has formed an equity advisory shop.

London interdealer broker OTC Exotics is set to open an office in the U.S. Salim Ghozali, co-founder, told Derivatives Week a date is yet to be set, although it will be soon.

Fitch Ratings has appointed Ben McCarthy as head of structured finance for Asia Pacific.

Peter Wu, head of structured equity derivative sales into China at BNP Paribas, departed his Hong Kong slot last week.

Barclays Capital analysts are recommending investors buy volatility via straddles on the SPDR Financials exchange traded fund, also known as the XLF, since uncertainty over second-quarter earnings should drive implied volatility levels higher than expected.

Michelle Nicoletta, a Latin America credit default swaps trader at Barclays Capital in New York, is set to join Standard Chartered as its head of Americas credit trading.

Hedge funds and prop desks are buying default protection on BT Group amid news reports of poor performance at the company’s pension fund, managed by Hermes Pension Fund Management.

Vincent Gomez, a director in credit default swaps trading who left Société Générale in March, is set to join UBS as a director in high yield CDS trading.

Standard Chartered has filled two sales slots in Taipei covering user currency and interest rate hedging.