Saratoga Prime Services | Pulse Trading Partnership

Saratoga Prime Services

Saratoga Prime Services | Pulse Trading

New York, NY, – Saratoga Prime Services, a division of Saratoga Capital, LLC, has formed an alliance with Pulse Trading, Inc. that will give Saratoga Prime’s hedge fund clients access to Pulse’s dark pool, agency desk and investment research services in return for Saratoga Prime’s trading, clearing, custody, technology and administration facilities.

Saratoga Capital of New York and Pulse Trading of Boston are both institutional agency brokerage firms. Saratoga Prime specializes in providing trading-related services to start-up and mid-sized hedge funds.

Under the joint agreement, Saratoga Prime’s clients will gain access to Pulse Trading’s BlockCross dark pool and the firm’s institutional trading desk, together with its Investment Research Consortium of “best of breed” independent securities analysis and commission management service.

Pulse’s clients will be able to tap into the brokerage services of Saratoga Prime, and the clearing and custody services of Goldman Sachs Execution and Clearing (GSEC), JP Morgan, and Interactive Brokers.

“We believe strongly that this reciprocal agreement between Saratoga Prime and Pulse Trading will be of immense benefit to our respective clients,” commented Saratoga Prime managing partner Lance Baraker. Added Kevin Carroll, Pulse Trading managing partner, “We are very pleased to introduce our leading-edge block trading and independent research services to Saratoga Prime and its clients.”

Baraker also disclosed that Saratoga Prime has expanded its Prime offering in Dallas, TX, and San Francisco, CA. Todd McFarland, formerly with Citigroup Lava Trading and AFA (Advanced Financial Applications) recently joined Pulse’s San Francisco office and is responsible for Saratoga’s West Coast business. New York-based Saratoga Prime also has a regional office in Boston, MA.

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Institutional Investment Consultant Directory | Excel List & Contact Details of Institutional Investment Consultants

Institutional Investment Consultant Directory

Excel List & Contact Details of Institutional Investment Consultants

Looking for an Institutional Consultant Directory? Our team has constructed an Excel-based directory of institutional investment consulting firms which provides the full contact details with each listing. We have a large list of institutional consultants and we provide the firm name, an executive’s name, email address, phone number, and physical address as well. If you would like to improve your list of institutional consultants or obtain the full contact details of a large number of institutional consulting firms please type your first name and email address into the form below.

You may also learn more about our Institutional Investment Consulting Firms on our website online at InvestorDatabases.com.

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Institutional Investment Consultant Database | Excel Directory of Institutional Consultants

Institutional Investment Consultant Database

Excel Directory of Institutional Consultants

Looking for an Institutional Investment Consultant Database? Our team has constructed our own Excel-based database of institutional consultants, we can provide you with full contact details on hundreds of valuable consultant contact details. Our databases provide you with the company name, individual name, email address, phone number and physical address for each institutional consulting firm listed within our database. To learn more about this please type your first name and email into the form below:

You may also learn more about our Institutional Investment Consultant Database on our website online at InvestorDatabases.com

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Angel Investor Directory | Excel List & Contact Details of Angel Investors

Angel Investor Directory

Excel List & Contact Details of Angel Investors

Looking for an Angel Investor Directory? Our team has constructed an Excel-based directory of angel investors which provides the full contact details with each listing. We have a large list of angel investors and we provide the firm name, an executive’s name, email address, phone number, and physical address as well. If you would like to improve your list of angel investors or obtain the full contact details of a large number of angel investors please type your first name and email address into the form below.

You may also learn more about our Angel Investor Directory on our website online at InvestorDatabases.com.

Tags: Angel Investor Directory, Directory of Angel Investors, List of angel investors, Angel investor Contact details, angel investor contact details, angel investors,

Angel Investor Database | Excel Directory of Angel Investor Contacts

Looking for an Angel Investor Database? Our team has constructed our own Excel-based database of angel investors, we can provide you with full contact details on hundreds of valuable angel investor contact details. Our databases provide you with the company name, individual name, email address, phone number and physical address for each angel investor group listed within our database.

To learn more about this please type your first name and email into the form below:

You may also learn more about our Angel Investor Database on our website online at InvestorDatabases.com

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Hedge Fund Startups | Where are they located?

Hedge Fund Startups

Hedge Fund Startups | Where are they?

Hedge fund startups are notoriously hard to track. They often don't register with databases, comment in the press or even market their strategy until it has reached a certain length of track record. I did some research and have found that those looking for information on starting a hedge fund are still coming from all of the expected places - NYC, NJ, Chicago, Florida, California and Texas.

Here is the map showing the level of interest coming from each city (click the map to view larger version):

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Yifei Huang | Prime Brokerage Research Analyst

Yifei Huang

Yifei Huang is a research analyst working for the Hedge Fund Consulting Group and PrimeBrokerageGuide.com. Her bio is posted below:

Hello, my name is Yifei Huang, and currently I am a candidate for Ph.D (expected Dec 2009) in Mathematics and Statistics at Boston University. I received my Bachelor's degree in Applied Mathematics from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China.

Besides academic training I had the opportunity to work as an intern at the Alternative Investment Department, Guosen Security Co., Ltd, one of the top security firms in China. During the internship I analyzed arbitrage strategies for CSI 300 stock index futures using robust regression models. In Dec 2008 I will carry out research in correlation trading as an intern at Bohong, China's first market neutral hedge fund. Recently I have been an enthusiastic student in the Prime Brokerage Industry and have published several articles at PrimeBrokerageGuide.com, thanks to the help of its founder Richard Wilson.

I am interested in internship opportunities in summer 2009 and full-time work opportunities starting from Dec 2009, with hedge funds/investment companies that focus on global investment strategies or alternative investment strategies.

I am a highly motivated person, I believe in hard-working, friendship, and I am glad to offer my help whenever/wherever I can. I am on my way of "the pursuit of happiness" - to me it means the pursuit of wealth and insight into the world around us, make connections with people who share the same values and philosophies with me, and ultimately be able to have an impact on the events that matter to other people's happiness, and help other people realize their dreams.

Are you looking for a highly motivated individual, a contributor and team-worker with a solid quantitative background? Please email me at: phoebyhuang@gmail.com

The following articles have been written by Yifei Huang and contributed to PrimeBrokerageGuide.com:

Yifei Huang

Prime Brokerage & Hedge Funds | Mounting Pressure

Prime Brokers & Hedge Funds

Prime Brokerage Firms Pressuring Managers

Adding to the challenges of trying to improve the performance of their funds hedge fund managers are now facing additional pressure from their prime brokers. While some funds will simply end up paying more or having to sell off some assets to meet capital requirements others will simply shop around more...further increasing the rate at which hedge funds change primary prime brokers or multi-prime with an assortment of prime brokerage firms at one time. Here is a short article on this topic:

The survival of a raft of hedge funds is being threatened by fresh pressure to stump up more collateral for trades made in a range of illiquid assets. So-called prime brokers, who provide a range of services to hedge funds, are imposing tougher conditions on their clients and charging more for financing following the collapse of Lehman Brothers in mid-September, raising fears that more funds face collapse.

The more conservative terms mean that a hedge fund would have to put up extra collateral against financing if markets fall further or sell down its holdings. The problem for many hedge funds is that they have already sold down their more liquid investments and are grappling with a wave of redemptions from their own investors. Further collateral requests or higher financing costs may push many hedge funds over the edge.

One hedge fund manager said: "Funding is being withdrawn by prime brokers and funding rates have risen sharply in the past week or two. A tough environment is just getting tougher."

Industry managers are concerned that renewed market turmoil, leading to weaker performance and client redemptions, could lead to a vicious circle of selling by hedge funds.

One prime broker said the situation was "on a knife edge". "Everyone needs to keep their nerve," he added.

He also said that prime brokers were particularly targeting funds that specialised in emerging markets, both in equities and fixed income, as well as in credit and convertible bonds - instruments that can -convert into ordinary shares. Source

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Performance Measurement & Attribution Systems

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Prime Brokerage Software Development

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Switch Prime Brokerage Firms | Prime Brokers

Switching Prime Brokers

Switching Prime Brokerage Firms

(http://PrimeBrokerageGuide.com) Lately you might have noticed an ongoing "battle of the press releases" in the media by many prime brokerage firms. These are typically written so that the firm is positioned as being safe, technologically advanced or recently swamped with new business. This is because these firms know that many decisions are being made each day right now by hedge fund managers regarding where to prime.

More funds than ever before are now deciding to multi-prime or switch prime brokers altogether. Here is a reason excerpt and quote from someone at UBS speaking to this point:

Across Wall Street, hundreds of investment funds that relied on broker-dealers established accounts with commercial banks boasting stronger credit. The moves have shaken up a business long dominated by Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Bear Stearns.

"It's a $2 trillion business and in normal market conditions, people kill themselves to move 1 percent of market share. In recent weeks, probably 35 to 40 percent of global market share has been redistributed," said Alex Ehrlich, global head of prime services at UBS. "Never has there been a more disruptive period."

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Financial Clearing and Execution Services from Prime Brokerage Firms

Clearing and Execution

Financial Clearing and Execution Services

Clearing is one of the most basic services provided by a prime broker. Loader (2002) gives an in-depth analysis for the clearing and settlement services in the general financial markets. When a prime broker is hired to carry out clearing, he performs back office functions on behalf of the hedge fund client with the broker-dealer that executed the trade.

When the hedge fund begins the trade, the fund provides the executing broker with the prime broker's name and the relevant account with the prime broker. Respectively, the executing broker gives-up the trade (meaning, passing the trade information) to the prime broker, and the hedge fund reports the allocations of the trade to the prime broke. The prime broker then performs a post-trade matching, confirms the trade with both sides if the trade details match. Otherwise, the prime broker works with the hedge fund and the executing broker to resolve the differences.

For the hedge fund, the choice of the executing broker includes but is not limited to the trading desk of the prime broker. (A broker-dealer must maintain a "Chinese Wall" between the prime brokerage operation and the trading desk.) If a prime broker acts as principal in the give-up process, the prime broker allows the hedge fund to trade under the prime broker's name and assumes the role of the hedge fund with respect to the executing broker. On the other hand, the prime broker plays the role of the executing broker with respect to the hedge fund, for all future cash flows associated with the trade. The prime broker could also act as agent, in which case the prime broker clears and settles the trade on behalf of the hedge fund but does not assume counterparty risk. Principal prime brokerage is most common in the foreign exchange, OTC derivative and credit markets. Exchange or cash traded securities are usually cleared on an agency basis.

In 2008, the financial crisis has proven the need for the multi-prime brokerage model. According to Sameer Shalaby, CEO of Paladyne Systems, "(hedge fund) firms should consider that establishing relationships with multiple prime brokers can spread the risk that their assets will be in jeopardy if another crisis arises." (full article)

The process for a hedge fund to clear through multiple prime brokerage firms has been made easy, thanks to the available technologies. In as early as 2003, three leading foreign-exchange prime brokers - Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan Chase and AIG Trading - have casted aside competitive differences and teamed up to create an online service for automating the "give-up" trade process, "to help (executing brokers) give up their transactions electronically not just to one prime broker but to all (of their) prime brokers"(more). Ron Suber, head of global sales and marketing and a senior partner at Merlin Securities, explains in an article dated Oct 2008 that Merlin's technology allows funds to aggregate data from different prime brokers on one system. "That has led to Merlin picking up dramatic new business given its multi-prime services."

By Yifei Huang

Sources: Hedge Funds and Prime Brokers; Fixed Income Prime Brokerage: Agency Model

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Prime Brokerage Accounts Flowing in New Directions

Prime Brokerage Flows

Prime Brokerage Industry Changes

Here is a short excerpt from Dealbook on the recent dramatic changes in the industry which have been reshaping the competitive landscape of this space:

The prime brokerage landscape seems to be changing amid the shake-up on Wall Street, according to Investment Dealers’ Digest. Two major prime brokers — Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers — are gone, while two more — Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs — have had hundreds of clients pull their money out of their prime brokerage units.

The result has been a boom for rivals like Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse, as well as independent prime brokers, which have all fought for years to lure prime brokerage clients away from their big rivals.

The prime brokerage units inside the big investment banks provide financing, clearing and settlement services for hedge funds, as well as for other investors. These units hold on to billions of dollars of their investors’ cash and help execute their trading strategy.

But the demise of Lehman Brothers last month shook up this lucrative business. Several hedge funds that had counted on Lehman’s prime brokerage unit were stunned to find out that their collateral was frozen and that they could not get access to their money to make trades. Some that depended on Lehman as their sole prime broker remain paralyzed. Read more...

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Prime Brokerage Operations Job | Open Prime Broker Position

Prime Brokerage Operations Job

Open Prime Brokerage Operations Position

About the company
One of the world's leading providers of financial services

Job description
-Trade and allocation data entry
-Reconciliation of account specific data between multiple systems
-General account opening and maintenance
-General prime brokerage operational support
-Cash movements, wires, processing stock certificates, etc.
-Interaction and problem resolution with account managers, sales, and end customers
-Assist in the development of new procedures, products, and technologies aimed at improving service to customers
-Additionally, assisting in the testing and implementation of such improvements

Who we are looking for
-Strong communication and relationship skills
-Must be detail oriented individual, capable of thriving in a fast paced environment
-Ability to work with multiple operational tools, often toggling back and forth throughout the day
-Must posses the desire to learn all aspects of the department functions, as well as the up and down stream impacts of actions taken within the department.
-Interest in the overall market

What's on offer
Competitive base salary with full benefits

Michael Page Contact
For further info, apply or phone on 617-428-3680.

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Interactive Brokers Trading Platform | Saratoga Prime

Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers & Saratoga Prime

Saratoga Prime Services, a division of Saratoga Capital, LLC, has added Interactive Brokers as a custodian for its hedge fund clients. Investors are concerned about deteriorating credit markets, broker failures, and rumors of hedge fund liquidations and counter party credit risk. “We are very excited to add IB as an option for our Hedge Fund Clients. They have been around for 30 years and have a great balance sheet and offer the only real time margining system that automatically enforces limits” said William Katts , managing partner at Saratoga Prime.

Interactive Brokers has no CDO’s or Sub prime debt, 4 billion in Equity Capital, and has an automated pre-trade credit vetting system. IB’s sole focus is on exchange listed products that are cleared through central clearing houses and are marked daily to external closing prices disseminated by the exchanges. “Our customer service, enhanced reporting, and capital introduction capabilities combined with IB’s superior technology offers a powerful platform for hedge funds” said Lance Baraker, managing director at Saratoga Prime.

“We realize the value of having an I-Broker such as Saratoga Prime. They become an extension of our sales force and promote our Prime Brokerage capabilities” said Bill McGowan, Managing Director, at Interactive Brokers.

Saratoga Prime Services offers Prime Brokerage on a fully disclosed basis through Interactive Brokers, Goldman Sachs Execution and Clearing, and JPMorgan. Saratoga Prime has offices in New York, Boston, and San Francisco. Saratoga Capital is a member of the AMEX, ISE, FINRA, NYSE/ARCA, and SIPC.

Disclosure: This press release has been published as part of Saratoga's sponsorship of PrimeBrokerageGuide.com. Their contact details are available by clicking here.

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Prime Brokerage Sales

Prime Brokerage Sales Tips

The prime brokerage industry is very competitive. If you are working within prime brokerage sales chances are you have found little to no resources on prime brokerage sales. I would like to start building those resources up here. To start with here is a brief video on the 10 elements needed to become #1 within any marketing and sales environment.

Permanent Link: Prime Brokerage Sales
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Low Stock Market Trading Volumes | Crises Affecting Volume

Stock Market Trading Volume

Low Stock Market Trading Volumes

There was an article out today in the FT about low stock market trading volume. I have heard this directly from prime brokerage firms, I've also heard that managers are holding more cash than usual, taking more cautious trading positions than usual. The exception to this seem to be those few funds which thrive during this type of market volatility, but as the index figures which published this morning show - most funds are working within negative territory for 2008. Here is the story:

Some of the steepest sell-offs and gains witnessed in an especially volatile few weeks for Wall Street could have been exacerbated by relatively low trading volumes as frightened hedge funds sat on the sidelines.

This decoupling of volume and volatility in equity markets is just another example of the reluctance of traders to speculate against a backdrop of uncertainty over the global banking system and economy, say analysts.On October 15, for example, when the S&P 500, Wall Street’s benchmark equity index, dropped 9.9 per cent, its largest one-day drop in more than 60 years, volume was only 11.5bn shares. This was the third lowest volume day that month, with only October 1 and 2, when the ban on short-selling financials was still in effect, having lower trading levels. Indeed volume was only 58 per cent of the record reported on October 10 when the S&P 500 fell just 1.2 per cent. Source

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Asian Hedge Funds | Asia Prime Brokerage Services

Asian Hedge Funds

Asian Fund Leverage & Prime Brokerage

It seems that many Asian-based hedge funds have dodged a few bullets by not being tied as closely to Bear or Lehman... that combined with traditionally using less leverage than some other funds might have helped a few Asian hedge funds weather this storm. By a few I mean very few - recent data suggests that Asian funds are down more than their peers over the last few months. Below is an excerpt on how some Asian funds have dodged the prime brokerage woes of US and UK based groups:
________________________

ASIAN hedge funds are relatively shielded from the distress that their counterparts in developed markets are weathering, thanks to their use of 'far less' leverage, said UBS head of prime services (Asia Pacific) David Gray.

'Our clients have been extremely sensible in the way they use gearing . . . and far more constrained in their use of illiquids.'

Still, Asian hedge funds could see redemptions of between 10 and 40 per cent. A clearer picture of the redemption rate is expected to emerge in early November.

Funds' cash levels vary between 20 per cent and more than 50 per cent, 'far higher than we have seen previously'. A year ago, cash levels were between 5 per cent and 10 per cent.

UBS yesterday hosted its third pan-Asian hedge fund conference. The bank's prime brokerage is the third largest in Asia after Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, with a market share estimated at about 15-17 per cent. Prime brokerage continues to generate strong results for the group.

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Hedge Fund Blog | Blog on Hedge Funds

Hedge Fund Blog

HedgeFundBlogger.com | Overview

This is a quick post to introduce my readers to http://HedgeFundBlogger.com. HedgeFundBlogger.com is a 1,000 article deep investment blog which focuses exclusively on hedge funds. This site tracks hedge fund trends, security purchases, news, networking events and offers dozens of educational resources.

Here are some links to the top 30 resources hosted on HedgeFundBlogger:

Hedge Fund Resources:

Hedge Fund Career Resources:

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Future of The Prime Brokerage Industry | Industry Trends

Prime Brokerage Future

Future of Prime Brokerage | Shifts in Power

The last 3 months of market activity has led to a mass re-distribution of power within the prime brokerage industry. Here is a quote from John Mack last week of Morgan Stanley speaking to this effect and of markets in 2009:
_______________________

Yet as Morgan Stanley and other companies move to reduce leverage, profit and revenues have plunged, forcing banks to cut back.

"Any time you take a business running at 30 times (leverage) and take it down to 16 to 17, that changes the nature of your business," he said. "We have to look at that and resize it."

As many as 30 percent of hedge funds are expected to go out of business in the next year due to market losses and redemptions, Mack said. As a result, revenues flowing through Morgan's prime brokerage business will decline.

Morgan Stanley shares some of the blame for being overleveraged, he said, and has been shedding assets and raising capital to reduce its leverage ratio. Morgan Stanley now has less than $20 of assets for every dollar of equity, down from more than $30. Source

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Fidelity Prime Brokerage | Prime Broker Services

Fidelity Prime Brokerage

Fidelity Prime Brokerage | Services

Resources regarding Fidelity prime brokerage:

Resource #1: Fidelity Capital Markets named Thomas Tesauro as EVP of its Prime Services Business in a move to grow its prime brokerage business given that many hedge funds are shifting away from traditional firms. Tesauro will be responsible for developing and implementing the strategic business plan, as well as managing the day-to-day operations for Fidelity's prime-brokerage business.
Tesauro brings more than 25 years of experience in the prime brokerage and equity finance markets that includes former leadership roles at Citigroup and Goldman Sachs. He will report to Mark Haggerty, president of Fidelity Capital Markets, the institutional trading division of Fidelity Investments. James Coughlin, SVP and head of prime sales, and Stephen Richard, SVP and head of prime account and product management, will report to Tesauro. source

Resource #2: Fidelity Investments is building out its prime brokerage. The Boston company, well-known as a mutual fund powerhouse, told the Financial Times, it is expecting to add 50 hedge funds to its client base over the next month. It currently is a prime broker to 300 hedge funds.

Fidelity said half its clients have $1 billion or more. The company has been broadening its business model. It launched a prime brokerage in 2003. Source

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Margin Calls | Risk of Margin Calls Associated With Frozen Prime Brokreage Accounts

Frozen Margin Calls

Margins Calls on Frozen Assets

The motivation to multi-prime increased more this week as hedge fund managers learn they may have to meet margin calls on securities which are frozen within Lehman Brothers. Here is a short excerpt from a news piece on this topic:
_____________________________________________

Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.'s hedge-fund clients may have to pay more collateral on $65 billion of assets frozen when the investment bank went bankrupt a month ago.

Lehman's London-based prime brokerage has about 3,500 active clients including hedge funds that own about $45 billion in securities, Steven Pearson, the partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers responsible for unraveling Lehman's U.K. operations, said in an interview. They hold an additional $20 billion in short positions, or bets that prices will fall.

While investors are largely unable to access their Lehman accounts, the value of the securities continues to fluctuate along with the markets. The clients may be required to put up more collateral if the value of those securities drops, a process known as a margin call.

``If your bank fails, you still have to pay your mortgage,'' Pearson, 43, said in an interview in Lehman's Canary Wharf office. ``Who is the holder of the risk of the securities? The hedge funds. If the value of the securities fell, they have to meet margin calls.'' Source

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Prime Brokerage Mergers & Acquisitions | Changing Industry

Prime Broker Mergers

Prime Brokerage Mergers & Acquisitions

As the prime brokerage industry continues to evolve I believe we will see further consolidation among competitors and even more emphasized bell shape to the industry. Here's a recent article on this topic:

As the United States falters, its competitors are scheming. On Monday, Dmitri Medvedev met with the leader of one of Russia's largest conglomerates, Mikhail Fridman of the Alfa Group, and gave his strong blessing for an acquisition of foreign banking holdings (preferably American.) He interjected at one point: “Maybe we should also buy something while it’s not too late?” and later insisted quite strongly that "despite the crisis ... there are nonetheless some good opportunities for concluding investment deals," to which Mr. Fridman is reported to have said "this is absolutely correct...I fully share your view," and so on.

They are not the only vultures circling. That same day, the Times reported that, late last month, executives from France's mostly-still-solvent banks gathered to discuss opportunities in banking sectors traditionally dominated by American companies. For Societe Generale, that included a bid for investment banking and equity derivatives. For BNP Paribas, it was the brokerage industry. And little time was lost—last Wednesday, BNP Paribas bought over Bank of America's prime brokerage unit and now competes with JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs. Japanese companies are attempting to derive similar benefits.

What can this all mean? One way to look at it is as a form of creative destruction in action, with the American model of specialist banking—that is, investment banks operating independently of commercial banks—being more vulnerable than, say, the European universal banks, though the latter have problems as well (for one thing, though a large and diversified bank is more stable than a niche one, failure of such a bank could be more catastrophic to the overall system). But the American model is still more attractive than the Russian banking model, which seems to depend on political favor and is less dynamic besides, or the Japanese model, which is an unintended consequence of absent investment opportunities within Japan itself. Read more...

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2 New Prime Brokerage Jobs | London & New York

2 New Jobs

2 New Prime Brokerage Job Openings

Position 1 Risk Manager: A leading global Fund of Hedge Funds with approx $15bn AUM and fantastic performance record is currently seeking an experienced Prime Brokerage risk manager to lead their risk monitoring and control team following a restructuring within their risk division. The team will be responsible for monitoring and controlling risk of the underlying hedge fund investments and monitoring the hedge funds’ liquidity risks. It will also involve monitoring whether they remain within agreed trading limits, whether they remain within asset allocation limits, and identifying and assessing any other potential risks within the portfolios. This position will involve leading/mentoring a small team of analysts.

Suitable candidates must have a strong academic record with degree level qualifications in a finance related discipline. Candidates should have a strong risk management background from either a: FOF, HF or an Investment Bank PB risk function and you understand risks from a hedge fund perspective.

Candidates must be highly motivated, self-directed individuals who enjoy working in an entrepreneurial environment and possess excellent communication / interpersonal skills as you will be interacting with clients. Strong VBA/VaR/Excel skills are required. Previous managerial experience would be highly advantageous. Please send your CV to jobs@selbyjennings.com

Position 2 - Java Developer: Genesis10 has 2 full time permanent openings based in New York City for experienced Java Developers. We are looking for Senior Java, J2EE developers to join business focused Prime Brokerage Technology team. The job requires deep understanding of building high performance API using OOP patterns. Senior Java, J2EE developer with a minimum of 7 years of professional experience in designing, developing, deploying and supporting application software. A team player who must be able to work well with a small, focused, talented team. Proactive and eager problem solver
Pragmatic and delivery-oriented
Experience communicating with Front Office personnel
Experience: MUST HAVE SKILLS: Core Java, SQL, Multithreading, Spring and Hibernate
High-throughput applications or trading applications.
Java, Spring, Hibernate, OOP, AOP, Design Patterns
Strong knowledge of SQL
Prior Experience in development of high-throughput applications
Good communication skills
7-10 years of experience preferred
GigaSpaces or Tangosol experience is a huge plus
Capital markets understanding is a big plus
Apply here.

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Prime Brokerage is Evolving | Industry Changes

Prime Brokerage Changes

Prime Brokerage Industry Evolving

In just six months the make-up of the prime brokerage market has completely changed. Previously dominated by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns, the industry looks set to be led more evenly by about six key players, with hedge funds dividing assets among them rather than having a core prime broker. Read more.

Related to Prime Brokerage Industry:

Tags: Prime Brokerage Trends, Prime Brokerage Industry, Prime Brokerage Trading, Prime Brokerage Ranking Changes, Prime Brokerage Industry Leaders, Head of Prime Brokerage

Prime Brokerage Singapore | Prime Broker Firms in Singapore | Article

Prime Brokerage Singapore

Article on Prime Brokerage in Singapore

When visitors arrive at Singapore's Changi Airport, they get both an immigration card and an application form for opening a hedge fund.

This was one of the jokes making the rounds in 2007. The fact is that hedge funds in Singapore were growing fast since 2006. According to an article dated Feb 2007 from eFinancialCareers, "prime brokers are in hiring mode" - Barclays Capital, Citigroup, Lehman Brothers, Morgan Stanley and UBS all hired for their Singapore prime brokerage operations in 2006.

By Nov 2007, Singapore serves as prime broking regional headquarters for Credit Suisse Group, Citigroup Inc and Barclays Capital plc, according to HedgeFund Intelligence. Citigroup and Morgan Stanley also opened Singapore prime brokerage offices in 2007, to service the fast-growing number of hedge funds in that market. Morgan Stanley, the top Singaporean prime broker by assets under management according to Eurekahedge, had previously been servicing its Singapore clients from Hong Kong.

As the growth of hedge funds slowed down due to the credit crisis, an article (download pdf) dated Feb 2008 pointed out that "their (referring to the prime brokers in Singapore) enthusiasm for growth is now waning". As reported on Oct 4^th, 2008, Morgan Stanley is looking at scaling back its prime-brokerage operation (detail). However others believe that "Asian hedge funds may be cold, but the Asian prime brokerage industry remains sizzling"(FINalternatives), indicated by Citi's move to add eight professionals to four Asia offices in Aug 2008, including transferring Danielle Vint to handle the prime brokerage's fixed-income desk in Singapore.

It is said that Citi has fired "the latest salvo in the prime brokerage talent wars in Asia". In Feb 2008, Merrill Lynch hired Aussie hedge fund CEO Jeffrey Levy for Asia prime brokerage, to join the firm's Singapore office. Levy's hire fills the hole left by Harvey Twomey, who left Merrill Lynch to join Deutsche Bank as head of global prime finance sales in Asia. Another source reports that in Sep 2008, Deutsche Bank has moved Chris Pagan (LinkedIn) from Hong Kong to Singapore in order to head prime brokerage for Southeast Asia.

by Yifei Huang

Tags: Singapore Prime Brokerage, Prime Brokers in Singapore, Clearing and Custody Services in Singapore, Securities Lending in Singapore, Prime Brokerage Firms in Singapore

Prime Brokerage Software | Custom Risk & Trading Services

Prime Brokerage Software

Prime Broker Investments in Software

Prime Brokerage is very competitive and industry players are always looking for an edge.

Traiana is an example of a provider of financial technology used by banks worldwide and prime brokers involved in the foreign exchange industry. The company has recently been selected to assist ABN AMRO by providing technological enhancements for use in their developing FX prime brokerage service. Traiana, is headquartered in San Mateo, California, with offices in New York, Chicago, London, and Tel Aviv. Customers include ABN AMRO, AIG Trading, CSFB, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and Societe Generale. Source

In a bid to gain market share in the ultracompetitive prime brokerage market, Credit Suisse First Boston has added a customized risk assessment and trading system to its prime brokerage unit. The new system will allow CSFB to provide its institutional clients with risk assessment across their holdings in the equity, fixed income, foreign exchange and derivatives markets, according to Philip Vasan, global head of prime services. CSFB has been considering systems to accomplish this for more than a year, he said.

Recently, Advent Software has been selected by Jefferies & Company Inc., a top tier global investment bank and institutional securities firm, to provided their Advent’s Geneva® to help in management of Jefferies’ growing prime brokerage offerings. Advent Geneva® now serves eight out of ten of the top prime brokerage firms worldwide and is innovative beyond competitors as to its global investment management and accounting platform. Source

Tags: Prime Brokerage Software, Prime Broker Software, Software Used by Prime Brokers, Which Prime Broker Uses the Most Advanced Software to manage risk and trading

Prime Broker Leverage | How Hedge Funds Use Leverage

Prime Broker Leverage

An Explanation | Prime Brokerage Leverage

One of key functions of prime brokers is to provide financing to its hedge fund clients, so they can acquire the leverage needed for their strategies. Since with leverage can come increased risk, the prime broker generally determines the degree of leverage that can be extended to hedge funds using a combination of stress-testing and value-at-risk, on a portfolio by portfolio (or client by client) basis. Due to the recent credit crunch, "Leverage is being closely watched," said Josh Galper, managing principal of Vodia Group, which advises hedge funds on borrowing strategies. "…the amount of leverage being utilized is being reviewed much more carefully than it has been in the past, for obvious reasons." (See article from MarketWatch)

There are two major methods that a prime broker can lend leverage to a hedge fund. The first is by providing margin financing; in other words, the hedge fund borrows some portion of the security's value from the prime broker. For example, the hedge fund holds a portfolio with a value of $100 million, using $25 million of its own assets and $75 million of margin debt provided by the prime broker. This way the hedge fund achieves a leverage of 4 to 1 (assuming only long positions), and the prime broker gains interest on the debt.

The alternative way of extending leverage is through the OTC derivatives. While the structure of this form of financing varies, one approach takes the form of a managed account swap, and is usually termed "synthetic prime brokerage". The prime broker sets up an account advised (or managed) by hedge fund manager who has trading discretion. So different from the first method, in this case even though hedge fund manager trades the account to implement the hedge fund's strategy, the portfolio actually belongs to the prime broker. The prime broker then enters into a total return swap with the hedge fund, and charges the interest in the form of a swap payment received from the hedge fund.

Through this synthetic prime brokerage service, the leverage used by the fund is determined by the amount of margin on the swap required by the prime broker. To follow the example above, the prime broker has an account with $100 million of its own assets. The account is advised by the hedge fund manager, where the hedge fund is the counterparty to a total return swap on that account. As margin for the swap, the prime broker requires the hedge fund to post $25 million of equity; thereby providing leverage of 4 to 1.

Many hedge funds use synthetic prime brokerage service as part of a full service prime brokerage agreement - with equity swaps used side by side with stock loan and other services for particular parts of their portfolios, according to an article by HedgeWeek.

Source: Hedge Funds and Prime Brokers

Guest post by Yifei Huang

Tags: Prime Brokerage Leverage, Hedge Fund Leverage, Prime Broker Leverage, How does hedge funds use leverage, What is leverage, prime brokerage leverage services

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