Barclays Capital has pulled off a coup by hiring Karan Madan as Latin America regional head and head of Latin America FICC trading. Madan, who joins from Deutsche Bank and previously worked at Merrill Lynch, is one of the most respected traders in the business, with former colleagues and rivals praising his skills.
A former colleague says: "He’s a talented trader. He takes views and will manage the house well. Barclays Capital is a very sovereign house. We rarely see them in the corporate sector. Maybe that will change under Karan."
Another banker says: "Barclays is in pretty bad shape so if one firm needs sorting out, it’s them." The UK bank has fallen away in Latin America in recent years, trailing the big US and European firms in the region.
One Deutsche Bank source says that while Madan’s departure is a loss, it is not insurmountable. "It was unexpected but the Deutsche platform has enough depth in its senior management to overcome his departure. The business is not a one-man show."
Madan’s remit at BarCap will be to improve the bank’s franchise in Latin America across all products including fixed income, currencies, commodities (FICC), equities and investment banking.