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ABN AMRO is structuring a EUR5.6 billion synthetic securitization of its counterparty risk from derivatives trades. The firm is pitching the product to its banking clients, says Jacques Straetmans, director. Other banks, including Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, are considering similar trades, according to firm officials (DW, 5/25). So far, UBS is the only investment bank that has executed such a trade in Europe, via its Alpine structure.

REFCO has hired Pierre Maliczak, former head of the fund derivatives business at Bank of America in London, as the European head of sales for its alternative investments group. He will report to David Henritze, president of REFCO Alternative Investments in New York.

Macquarie Bank is considering offering in the coming months leveraged contracts for difference in the Australian market for its retail client base. "We're evaluating this closely at the moment," said Greg MacKay, head of equity derivatives at Macquarie in Sydney. MacKay explained that the CFDs, which provide the economic benefits of underlying stocks, have been popular in the U.K. and were introduced in the Australian market last year. "It's still relatively new in Australia," he added, noting that it has taken several months of educating clients for the product to gain interest down under.

In recent years the financial industry has evolved significantly with the creation of new products, formulation of trading strategies, development of theoretical tools and growing sophistication of customers. Accordingly control functions such as internal audit have evolved to keep pace. One of the outcomes is the emergence of a new function of risk analysts within internal audit.

Douglas Muller, corporate derivatives marketer at Lehman Brothers, has joined Banc of America Securities as a principal in fixed income derivatives origination. Muller, who declined comment, reports to Marc Katz, managing director and head of fixed income derivatives origination for corporate and investment banking clients in Chicago, according to Jeff Hershberger, spokesman in New York. Katz referred comment to Hershberger.

Tim Van Housen, managing director and senior originator in structured credit at Bank One Capital Markets in Chicago, has left the firm. Reasons for Van Housen's departure could not be determined and Van Housen could not be reached for comment.

Barclays Capital plans to start offering retail investors inflation protected exposure to funds structured with over-the-counter derivatives. Paul Coleman, director in investor solutions in London, said the products are being developed to take advantage of low-inflation rates and investor demand for less equity exposure.

Citigroup recently hired S.K. Kang, structurer in Credit Suisse First Boston's emerging markets group in Seoul, for a similar position on its fixed income desk. "This further strengthens our team," said Alex Park, head of the financial markets group at Citi in Seoul.

Bank of America has hired Fujita Hideyuki, interest rate derivatives trader at Shinsei Bank in Tokyo, for its Japanese interest rate trading desk. Hideyuki confirmed the move, but declined further comment. He reports to Michael Thorson, head of interest rate derivatives trading in Tokyo, who did not return calls.

Deutsche Bank has hired Eric Bensoussan, structurer in the new product development team at Crédit Lyonnais in London, for its exotic structuring group. Bensoussan joined Deutsche Bank late last month as v.p. He reports to Onno Vriesman, global head of ESG.

Deutsche Bank has started pitching non-principal protected structures in the U.S. Karen Fang, v.p. in the structured products, global equities division in New York, said the move is a natural extension of the firm's principal protected activity through which it sells equity-linked notes. It started offering equity structured products in the U.S. at the beginning of the year (DW, 1/12).

William Gleason, corporate derivatives marketer at JPMorgan in New York, has moved to Barclays Capital to work in a similar role. Calls to Gleason and Ed Somekh, head of corporate risk management and derivatives at BarCap in New York, to whom Gleason reports, were referred to Linda Wynns, spokeswoman in New York. Wynns declined comment. Michael Dorfsman, spokesman at JPMorgan in New York, did not return calls.