US hedge funds and institutional investors have been buying call spreads on the Nifty 50 (CNX Nifty). The spike in call volume on the index stems from expectations the India equity market will spike higher during the next quarter as the country’s National Democratic Alliance embarks on its campaign of economic reforms, following its sweeping victory in May.
Eric Dutruit, the head of equity structuring and structured sales, Americas, for Bank of America Merrill Lynch in New York, has left the firm. His departure comes just over a year since relocating to New York from the firm’s European headquarters in London.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange Futures Exchange is set to launch futures trading on the CBOE/CBOT 10-year U.S. Treasury Note Volatility Index (VXTYN) that will allow participants to hedge pure interest rate volatility risk based on U.S. government debt with a single product for the first time.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange is to include SPX weeklys options series in its VIX calculation. According to the CBOE, the addition of weeklys options will allow the VIX’ spot values to be calculated with S&P 500 option series that more precisely match the 30-day target timeframe for expected volatility that the VIX is intended to represent.
Single-stock derivatives are dominating flow on U.S. equity sellside desks. Bill Looney, director, institutional business development at CBOE, said directional plays now account for 75-85% of flow, according to eight major sellside desks he’s been in contact with.
Derivatives brokerage firm X-CHANGE FINANCIAL ACCESS (XFA) has expanded its VIX options desk at the Chicago Board Options Exchange. The move from XFA comes in response to growing demand for order handling services and real-time information from customers.