Commerzbank Securities is continuing the process of reorganizing its New York bond business (BW, 4/15, 11/6/00), this time by consolidating much of the management of its daily bond trading activities in the hands of Ashwin Kumar, the New York-based head of fixed-income proprietary trading, according to fixed-income co-chief Ricardo Pascoe. Pascoe says the move has yet to be announced, pending completion of a standard internal review process. To effect the shift, Pascoe confirms that management of the government and agency trading operations will be carved out from Stephen Creaturo's role as head of fixed-income trading, but he'll retain the rest of his duties. Similarly, Steven Block, the head of interest rate derivative trading in New York, will also have his management mandate shifted over to Kumar. The move will leave Kumar with oversight of all interest-rate derivative, agency, government and proprietary trading activities. Creaturo was traveling last week and could not be reached for comment. Block, when reached at his desk, declined comment. Kumar, who declined comment as well, reports to Pascoe.
Pascoe says the shift is a natural extension of the firm's yearlong quest to link its cash bond trading businesses to its fixed-income businesses on a global basis. He notes that this has already been accomplished in London and Tokyo. He declined to speculate or comment as to why Kumar will perform this task better than the current combination of Block and Creaturo.
The year-long effort to build the U.S. bond business in New York is largely completed, and there will be little new hiring going forward, Pascoe says. He points to a soon-to-be-announced bond underwriting mandate with Harrah's Casinos, to be co-led with Salomon Smith Barney, as proof that the firm is making headway in its attempt to leverage off its existing commercial lending relationships.