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Opinions are divided on quantifying the vastly important market for Shariah-compliant investment products, leaving institutions about how what resources to devote to them.

How have the constituent parts of the interest rate derivatives market held up through the worst financial crisis in a generation? Total Derivatives provides a case-by-case study.

As one Euromoney reader put it: “Macro has had more comebacks than Lazarus.” But is the strategy back to stay? – at least for three or so years, say managers.

Finance sector ECM Banks and agencies raised $108.5 billion via 81 deals globally in the second quarter of 2008, up from $32.9 billion via 49 deals in the first quarter of the year, and year-to-date issuance already surpasses the total amount raised in 2007 ($100.8 billion). ECM issuance by financial sector issuers accounted for 42% of all global issuance in the second quarter and 26% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Scotland’s $24.3 billion rights issue via Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch and RBS is the largest ECM deal on record.

How will the baby boomers that will come onto the Middle East’s job market over the next 10 years be employed?

Variance swaps and contingent variance swaps allow for a number of trading strategies.

Investors say the Middle East is becoming an interesting new territory for hedge fund managers, as opportunities in the region increase.

While the build-up of a portfolio of diversified assets overseas is one key pillar of the government’s economic strategy, another is a commitment to a broad range of service-based industries domestically.

Mark Hillery has apparently left hedge fund Tudor. There is no indication whether his departure is permanent or a sabbatical. Meanwhile, the firm has hired Andrew Bound from Goldman Sachs Asset Management. Bound left GSAM in May and is believed to be starting at the fund in August.

Barclays Capital has confirmed that Adrian McGowan is joining as managing director and head of foreign exchange trading, Asia-Pacific, from Deutsche Bank. It has also promoted Lutfey Siddiqi, its managing director and Asia-Pacific head of corporate FX and risk advisory, who now has additional management responsibility for distribution of the full suite of flow and structured FX products across corporate and investor clients in Asia-Pacific. Dean Tonkin, currently head of FX trading, Japan, and regional head of FX forwards, has also assumed additional regional responsibility for FX spot trading and FX proprietary trading.

An investment research paper (Conditional Variance Swaps, Product Note, JPMorgan Securities, April 3 2006) by analysts at JPMorgan explains how variance swaps emerged.