UBS to combine currency, rates and credit trading into new unit
SWISS bank UBS has reorganised part of its investment bank to put its currency, interest rates and credit trading businesses into one unit, amid a growing European investigation into potential manipulation of currency markets.
A memo sent by the bank last week said a new FRC (FX, rates, credit) unit will be run by Chris Murphy and George Athanasopoulos. Murphy was head of rates and credit and Athanasopoulos was co-head of foreign exchange.
Chris Vogelgesang, who was co-head of FX and precious metals, will move to another role in the bank, the memo said.
UBS has been shrinking its investment bank and retreating from fixed income and the memo said the latest change follows on from that reorganisation.
The bank cut 10,000 jobs last year as part of the overhaul.
“The integration is not a change in strategy, rather a natural evolution of what we are trying to achieve between the development phases of the Accelerate strategy,” the memo said.
Last week it was reported that UBS has come to an immunity deal with European Union antitrust authorities to spare the Swiss bank from fines for the manipulation of benchmark interest rates.