Due to plummeting equity market values and strong risk aversion, a large swathe of the investor base is underweight in its target equity market allocations. Sooner or later – and even in the midst of continuing market uncertainty – these investors will reweight their portfolios. But what sort of product solutions are sellside firms putting on the table to encourage them back into the market?
Opacity and illiquidity have been the scourge of many an investor as the financial crisis has unfolded, and are now being heavily targeted in the regulatory counter-attack. Natasha de Terán examines how this has played to the strengths of the equity derivatives market.
Two major banking blow outs, accusations of mis-selling and mounting counterparty risk concerns have all taken their toll on the structured products market. Natasha de Terán assesses the impact on the business and investigates how providers have responded to the challenges.
Variance and volatility swaps have been among products to capture the minds of sophisticated derivatives players in recent years. Now bankers, index providers and their exchange counterparts are seeking to create standardised, simpler versions of the instruments to widen their uptake.
Many believe that property-linked instruments are poised to become the next big thing in the derivatives market – but they are not sure when. In the first of two articles, The Banker looks at how the market is likely to evolve.Natasha de Teran reports.Concerns about overheating in the UK property market have been as widespread over the past few years as they ever have been, with many fearing the worst from the record rise in asset prices.