Derivs - People and Markets

Investec Bank is marketing a retail version of its range deposit, linked to the FTSE 100 and structured to take advantage of both bull and bear markets.

Yann Garnier has replaced Nicolas Reille as head of structured products sales Asia ex-Japan for Société Générale in Hong Kong.

Neil McCormick, head of global equity exotics and hybrids trading at JPMorgan in London, is understood to have resigned.

Rig Karkhanis, managing director and head of fx and local-currency trading in Asia at Merrill Lynch, has left the firm in the wake of its merger with Bank of America.

The decision of whether changes Liz Claiborne made to its credit facility will trigger credit default swaps on the company’s bonds may be finalized by the dealer community Tuesday, according to one market watcher made aware of the plans.

Société Générale is recommending investors go long machinery, healthcare, electronics, communications equipment and software stocks by buying delta call spreads reflecting a roughly 40% chance the stocks will gain ground by the third quarter.

Moody’s Investors Service’s revision of the way it rates collateralized debt obligations backed by credit default swaps on corporate credits could prompt more unwinds, but should be easily absorbed, according to Royal Bank of Scotland in London.

Kensington Blake Capital, an Atlanta-based consultancy, has started to advise clients on investing in asset-backed securities and using interest rate, fixed income and fx derivatives. The firm was founded last March with eight partners—all but one of whom had worked at Wachovia Securities.

Chris Lillingston-Price, head of sales for capital markets, structured products and fx in Asia-Pacific for Banco Santander, recently left the firm.

New Indonesian regulations aimed at curbing rupiah speculation will intentionally snag close-out netting under the International Swaps and Derivatives Association Master Agreement.

Other market participants appear to be interested in getting a slice of the credit default swap clearing pie—beyond the existing four.

Maxim Group is looking to issue a gold-linked principal protected note to retail investors at month end for the first time. It expects investors to seek a hedge against possible inflation post-economic crisis.