The European Covered Bond Dealers Association (ECBDA), a service model opened by Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), will represent dealers in the European covered bond markets and hopes to replicate and complement the successful model applied by the European Primary Dealers Association which represents primary dealers in the European government bond markets.
According to Mark Austen, Managing Director of both ECBDA and EPDA, despite the difference between government bonds and covered bonds markets new association is directed to bring institutions together as a strong, constructive dealer voice in an important product.
The following dealers have agreed to join the ECBDA: Barclays, BNP Paribas, Commerzbank, Danske Bank, Deutsche Bank, Dresdner, Morgan Stanley, Natixis, Royal Bank of Scotland, Socit Gnrale, and UBS. Each of these banks either makes markets in at least 50 covered bond or ranks among significant underwriters of covered bonds in Europe. It is expected that more firms will join in the future.
Executive Board for the Association’s first year comprises Co-Chairs Carsten Mosch, European Co-Head of Liquid Rates Trading at Deutsche Bank, and Torsten Elling, Head of Covered Bond Syndicate and Trading at Barclays Capital. Sebastien Rosset, Executive Director of Fixed Income Trading at UBS, will serve as Vice-Chair and Sebastien Gianfermi, Head of Euro, SAS and Covered Bonds Trading at BNP Paribas, will be Treasurer.
The formation of a covered bond dealers association will help further our strategic objective of being a full service, member focused and pan-European trade association, says Karsten Moller, executive vice president and head, SIFMA, Europe and Asia.
We will be considering possible initiatives to help return liquidity to the covered bond markets. Achieving a coherent dealer voice is a big step in the right direction, says Carsten Mosch, co-chair.
Despite recent liquidity challenges in the covered bond markets Karsten Moller draws the positive picture of product’s long term prospects.
L.D.