Area of work
Structuring, Credit Derivatives, Fixed Income
Studied
European Management, University of Lancaster, Icade, Madrid
Joined
2007
Working in
London
When you work in Structuring you to get to know the products inside out and also have a lot of scope for creativity. There's two main ways that we work here, either we come up with ideas for new products and pitch them to Sales who then present these to their clients, or a client comes to us with a specific requirement or problem and we develop a solution - we call this reverse enquiry. Both avenues require us to be creative, the first one is starting with a clean slate, knowing the market, coming up with ideas and making them happen. Reverse enquiries require looking at a problem and having the analytical skill and the creativity to engineer a solution that adds value for the client.
With both approaches there's a specific process we follow. Firstly we come up with product ideas, or solutions to the client's requirement, after initial discussions with Sales and Trading. Then we do an initial pricing on the product, which a Trader assesses and does a firmer pricing and then we pitch the product internally to Sales or discuss the solution together with Sales and the client. We are also responsible for creating the marketing material and the more senior Structurers are involved in the sales process throughout and meet clients frequently. Most clients would like to have a third party opinion on the risk profile of the proposed transaction, which is why we also talk to ratings agencies who rate the products in terms of their risks. Once the client has agreed to go ahead with a transaction, structuring is also actively involved in the last step which entails talking to lawyers to create the documentation and set up the product on Bloomberg. Structuring liaises with many different parties internally and externally, which requires good interpersonal skills, stamina and patience.
The idea of a structured product is to model payoffs according to the clients' requirements, achieve a greater return than you would get with a plain vanilla product and also develop structural features that minimise risk. As Analysts, it's our responsibility to support the structuring process throughout and look at technical factors, the more senior Structurers are more focused on the marketing of products to Sales and clients.
The Structuring role has really only been created in the last 10 years, and it's great to be a part of a bank that values it so highly. My university degree was focused on business administration and finance, while many of my colleagues have more technical backgrounds like engineering. I had always been highly motivated to work in a more technical role, which is why structuring appealed to me. And that's the thing about BNP Paribas, they look at the individual person and then make a judgement about the best role to suit them. If you're motivated and smart, they're open to considering you for a role that might not look like a natural fit from your educational background, but suits your skill set.
Although you get a lot of guidance and support here you're also expected to be entrepreneurial, which is rare for an investment bank, especially as an Analyst. As an example, I knew that we were hiring a lot of Sales people for the German market, so I made my contacts and discussed products with Sales that could work for their clients. Then once I knew more about what was going to work I talked to my manager, who gave me valuable feedback, and we worked together on developing products and solutions that were going to add value for our clients. If you perform well and you're prepared to put yourself forward, you get early responsibility. BNP Paribas are very open to the idea of people learning and developing and getting involved in new things.
It's a great time to be here, because we're concentrating on stable growth at a time when many other banks are downsizing. There will probably be some instability in the markets for the next few years, so being at BNP Paribas is a big advantage. The industry is also recognising our success as we were recently given the Credit Derivatives House of the Year award by Euromoney, one of the leading banking journals. We have a lot of room to grow, with solid profits from our corporate and retail banking arms and we're well placed to capitalise on this.
