It was the turn of some of the larger European banks to report recent results, while prop index launches and crypto saw their share of headline space.

Société Générale saw good performance in structured products in the first quarter of 2020, after completing a redesign of its product range, first initiated in Q2 2020, to decrease the sensitivity of its revenues to market dislocations.

Listed products benefited from high volumes, particularly in Asia and Germany, according to the bank. The French bank issued more than 98,000 listed certificates in Germany during Q1 2021, up from 34,477 certificates in the first quarter of 2020. In France, the bank confirmed that ESG is at the centre of its strategic thinking for all its businesses. It has committed itself to achieve carbon neutrality in banking portfolios by 2050, with 10 products out of a total of 51 public offers linked to ESG indices.

Many investors prefer to buy bitcoin futures rather than physical bitcoin at the spot price

UBS’ issuance and sales of structured products tumbled to 1,199 products valued at US$610m in the first quarter of 2021 from 1,836 products worth US$2.2 billion in the previous year. SRP data shows that the range of asset classes in the bank’s Apac structured product issuance in Q1 20 and Q1 21 has shifted. In the US market, UBS boasted structured product sales of US$2 billion with 1,754 products during the first quarter of 2021, its best record since the same period a year prior where volumes stood at US$1.8 billion with 1,000 products.

BNP Paribas posted revenues of €11.8 billion in the first quarter of 2021 – an increase of 8.6% compared to Q1 2020. In the operating divisions, revenues were up by seven percent, with corporate and institutional banking (CIB) reporting an increase of 24.3% from the prior year quarter. The division saw strong activity in rates, forex and credit markets, with a ‘very good level’ in equity derivatives and prime services.

Innovation is never far away from headlines. Marex Financial Products is pitching clients a cash and carry certificate linked to the price of bitcoin. The new market-neutral arbitrage strategy capitalises on an imbalance in the crypto market “as many investors prefer to buy bitcoin futures rather than physical bitcoin at the spot price”. The strategy involves buying bitcoin in the spot market and selling it in the futures market at a higher price. Since there is no storage cost for crypto coin, investors can extract a fixed return as future converges to the spot price on the expiry date. The certificate will generate a guaranteed yield plus their initial investment as long as they hold the certificate to maturity.

MSCI is in talks with private banks and broker-dealers to licence its suite of 20 China thematic indices customised for structured products. The new China catalogue was launched on 18 December to capitalise on ‘the long-term structural trends’ in the country. The rules-based offerings span across transformative technologies, society and lifestyle as well as environment and resources in China, which MSCI identifies as megatrends ‘expected to significantly impact the economies and societies around the world in the future’.

In another first for the industry, HSBC is offering a new proprietary index in the US structured products market, the AiMAX, an AI powered rules-based multi asset index which is the first of its kind to use artificial intelligence as a means of constructing a diversified growth portfolio. The launch follows the arrival of the firm’s initial risk-controlled product which entered the market in 2020.

Cboe Europe, a pan-European exchange operator and a subsidiary of Cboe Global Markets has appointed Natan Tiefenbrun as senior vice president, head of European equities. In this new role, Tiefenbrun will oversee Cboe's European equities trading business, reporting to David Howson (pictured), EVP, president Europe and Asia Pacific, Cboe Global Markets.

Index provider related appointments saw industry expert Bryan Hahn join the Qontigo board as strategic accounts director. Based in London, he will report to Greg Fenton, senior managing director and global head of strategic accounts at Qontigo in New York. Nasdaq has appointed Kate Morgenstern as head of sales, Nasdaq Risk, in London. She will oversee the exchange operator’s technology platform targeted at banks and broker dealers for managing clients’ financial and operational risks.

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