The Headhunter

Senior Client Relationship Manager - Risk Solutions - London (French Speaker)

Our client sells bespoke and off-the-shelf credit analytical services, tools, data and training to develop and improve internal credit risk systems and practices. They sell to financial institutions, corporations, insurance companies and asset managers in achieving strategic and business objectives in risk measurement and management. We seek a Senior Relationship Manager to build the business in the Middle East, Greece, Turkey, Egypt and Benelux. The role will be based in London will involve extensive travel. You will have a sound knowledge of credit risk estimation techniques with particular emphasis on credit ratings processes. We are looking for consultative sales experience with a strong network of credit risk contacts. You will be fluent in English and French.

For more information please contact Áine Hall on +44 (0)20 7392 2644 or aine@freshman.co.uk

IT Spending in Credit Derivatives to Grow This Year

An article in www.silicon.com reports that IT spending on credit derivative trading systems is set to rise by 45 per cent to almost USD500m this year as banks rush to automate the settlement process and cut the cost of transactions. It goes on to say that the investment in automation is vital for dealing with the rapid increase in credit default swaps (CDS) trades, with many of the world's largest credit derivative dealers struggling with backlogs of unconfirmed trades and high levels of manual mistakes. The report was produced by the US research consultancy Aite Group.

City Groups Join Forces to Influence EU Rules

An article in today's FT says a group of 11 leading trade associations has launched a bold move to influence the interpretation of imminent European Union financial markets legislation amid fears UK regulators could take an overly stringent approach. They say that bodies party to the highly unusual co-operative effort include The Association of British Insurers, The British Bankers' Association, the Investment Management Association and the London Investment Banking Association. The venture underlines concerns about the implications of MiFID, which takes effect in November 2007.

City Banks Moot Rival System for Trade Reporting

An article in The Times reports that profits at the London Stock Exchange are being threatened by a plan by the City’s biggest banks to build a rival trade reporting system. Ten City banks are thought to be holding preliminary talks about setting up their own trade reporting system in the wake of the introduction of MiFID. The article reports UBS and Merrill Lynch are included in this list of ten and Finextra speculates that Deutsche and Citigroup are included in this number.

Product Manager - OTC Derivatives Processing - London

We seek a seasoned product manager to enable the delivery of our client's OTC processing product to their European based clients. The role is multi-faceted. You will facilitate the client implementation process through meeting with clients and becoming familiar with client operational workflows. You will be the main liaison for pre-sales client pilots by interfacing & leading weekly meetings with clients and managing internal resources for pilots. You will create and manage detailed project plans for new client implementations. You will work with IT to help deliver solutions. This is an ambassadorial role and will also involve participating in industry events and committees. For more information, please contact Aine Hall on +44 (0)20 7392 2644 or aine@freshman.co.uk

Head of Business Development - Risk Solutions - London/Frankfurt

Our client sells bespoke and off-the-shelf credit analytical services, tools, data and training to develop and improve internal credit risk systems and practices. They sell to financial institutions, corporations, insurance companies and asset managers in achieving strategic and business objectives in risk measurement and management. We seek a Sales Director to manage and grow their business in Northern Europe. The role will be based in either London or Frankfurt. You will have a sound knowledge of credit risk estimation techniques with particular emphasis on credit ratings processes. You will have demonstrable consultative sales experience with a strong network of credit risk contacts. You will be fluent in English and German. For more information please contact Aine Hall on +44(0)20 7392 2644 or aine@freshman.co.uk

Deutsche Börse Re-affirms Interest in Euronext

Finextra reports today that Deutsche Börse has made new moves to build support from key stakeholders for its proposed merger with Euronext and says its takeover bid for the pan-European stock exchange is now worth five per cent more than the rival offer made by the New York Stock Exchange. Euronext agreed a USD10bn deal from Nyse in May, ousting a rival bid by Deutsche Börse, although the agreement still needs shareholder approval. Full article.

Business Analyst - London - Stockbroker

Our client is a London Stockbroker with Fund Manager clients in Europe, the Americas and Asia. They have developed a proprietary research platform that uses equity analytical techniques, such as DCF and CFROI, to analyse corporate performance. We seek a Business Analyst who can work between clients and IT to add value to their clients' usage of their research. This role will be varied according to their clients' data requirements. For example, one day you may be producing requirements' analysis for re-building equity models. Another day you may help clients with bespoke data requests. Your work may focus on one-off processes as well as looking at automating frequent modelling requests. You will work with IT to deliver new solutions for clients. To be successful in this role you will have a sound understanding of equity markets with a detailed comprehension of corporate valuation and modelling. You will have accounting knowledge (including IFRS accounting standards) and be able to interpret accounts in a stock market environment. You will have a high standard of Excel/VBA. You will also have excellent client facing skills. For more information, please contact Aine Hall on +44(0) 20 7392 2644 or aine@freshman.co.uk

FSA Produces Latest MiFID Paper

Last week, the FSA released its latest consultation paper on MiFID, covering client monies, regulated markets, transparency for equities and various aspects of how UK regulation would be handled. To read the paper, click here.

Citi Reaching for Bigger Piece of Hedge Fund Pie

We have read today in an article that Citigroup yesterday launched a new prime brokerage unit, called OpenPrime, as a means of expanding the services it offers to hedge funds. Citi is aiming to catch a trio of investment banks; Bear Stearns,  Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. These banks control the majority of prime brokerage business for hedge funds. The article says these prime brokerages lead the field through their ability to easily handle complex global market transactions. Prime brokers perform many of the back-end processing and administrative functions for hedge funds, as well as lend the investment pools money. OpenPrime is an amalgamation of new technology developed by Citi, as well as systems offered by French software firm, Linedata Services.