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Interdealer broker ICAP has announced that it has expanded the range of securities available on its electronic securities lending platform i-Sec to include exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and exchange-traded commodities (ETCs).

Options traders are flocking to the recently-approved options on the GLD Gold Trust, an exchange traded fund backed by gold, and causing options exchanges to expand the maximum number of traders permitted to make markets in the options. The Philadelphia Stock Exchange, which would typically cap the maximum number of quoters in a new options class to 12, is expanding that number to 22, which is usually allowed for top 5% of the top traded options. The Chicago Board Options Exchange is going even further, expanding its cap on the maximum number of market makers to 75 from 50. "CBOE anticipates that there will be substantial trading volume in this class. In addition, increasing the class quoting limits to 75 will accommodate market makers that are currently on the wait list to be appointed to the option class," CBOE officials wrote in a related rule filing. The more market makers there are in an options class, the deeper the markets, but the caps prevent market makers from having too little business. Several traders attributed the interest to long-term interest in commodities and the gold market undergoing a correction.

Dave Hitchins has apparently left his position as head of option trading at Calyon London. There's no confirmation from the bank and at the time of writing, the reason for his departure is not known.

Poor old Peter Snasdell has had a bit of a bad run of luck since it was announced that RBS was buying ABN Amro. In the past year, he has had a very brief stint at BNP Paribas – he disliked the commute apparently – followed by a spell at RBC. He has now joined Newedge.

Andy Goldberg, who left his role as head of FX trading, Americas at BNP Paribas in late March, has resurfaced at hedge fund Ellington Capital Management.

Royal Bank of Canada has been carrying out a bit of a reorganisation of its FX business. Ed Monaghan is due to relocate to London from Toronto as global head of FX trading, where he will be joined at some point in August by Mark Gibson and Rein de Gier, who are coming over from Sydney/ Gibson will be global head of non-CAD FX spot trading, and de Gier will head up non-CAD option trading. Meanwhile, Wayne Baker will head up global CAD FX Spot trading and Patric Booth will head up Global CAD and CAD crosses FX Options. Both will be based in Toronto. RBC also recently employed Stan de Groot for its team in Sydney, where he will be head of Asia FX Options. De Groot previously worked at ABN AMRO.

Chris Smith has joined Deutsche Bank in London as director, FX investor sales in London. Smith, who joins from Citi, reports to Chris Hansen head of FX investor sales for Europe.

When Deutsche talks, market participants and observers listen.

As Lars Seier Christensen, joint chief executive of Saxo, is fond of telling me, I’m slipping up. In the past, I have frequently called him to ask about some deal I’ve heard about through the grapevine. But recently, Saxo has announced initiative after initiative of which I have had no inkling.

Saxo opens in Japan

It was off to the ACI UK’s summer party last night. It was an excellent evening. The party was well attended and most of the guests were in good spirits. However, there was a bit of muttering about what had gone on in the earlier trading session, when European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet came out and showed his almost Germanic anti-inflationary credentials. Cue a sudden reversal of the euro and the unwinding of all of Fed chairman jawboning from the day before. He might as well have finished his speech by saying: “Buy euros now, wear diamonds later. How you left Ben?”

Well-placed market sources say that Steve Walker has left MF Global, where he worked as a prop trader in London, to join Société Généralé’s spot desk.