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Because of its policy on not commenting on staff, there’s no confirmation that Stephan Coquillaud has quit the French bank, apparently with a junior colleague, where he was employed as an options trader. Market sources are putting two and two together and speculating that they are off to join Dave Hitchins at Tor Dom, although the Canadian bank had also not responded to enquiries at the time of writing. It should be a simple job this, it really should.

Word reaches me that Duffy has joined high frequency trading outfit D Square, which is run by Damian Mitchell, a former colleague of mine from Midland Bank. Naturally, I was surprised that the Welsh faux-soul songstress should be moving across to the world of finance to join the company as its seventh employee, so I called up Damian, who seemed so stunned that I’d heard he refused initially to give me any further details. “Listen shag,” I explained. “It’s like torture. I’ll find out all the deets eventually, but if you make it difficult, I’ll only get pissed off. So save your finger nails, if you get my drift.”

Alternative investment manager Millennium Global Investments has appointed Eelco Fiole as its group chief financial officer. The company has also appointed Marc Clapasson as managing director, product and business relationships based in Geneva. Clapasson, who will be responsible for sales into German-speaking Europe, previously headed the product and business development unit at Prime Capital (Asset Management) AG in Frankfurt.

There a funny bunch, those central bankers. Word reaches me that Ben Welsh, head of fixed income, commodities and currencies at UniCredit Markets & Investment Banking, who has just got a new boss (see UniCredit Group and NewSmith get betrothed), has joined the Bank of England’s Joint Standing Committee (JSC). This was established in 1973 as a forum to discuss broad market issues and most FX players still regard it as an honour to serve. Despite a commitment to transparency, the BoE declined to confirm the news, telling me I’d have to wait for publication of the minutes of the latest meeting, which took place on Wednesday, although Welsh wasn’t there as he is travelling. I wonder if they start the meetings off by rolling up their trouser legs and giving each other a funny hand shake?

Four months after the introduction of actively managed exchange-traded funds, registered investment advisors are on the cusp of moving into these offerings.

As the second largest financial institution in Montenegro, NLB Montenegrobanka is a key player in the country’s burgeoning banking sector, serving a growing number of retail and corporate customers through its 15-strong branch network. In 2007, the bank nearly tripled its profits to €3.4 million. As a member of Slovenia’s NLB banking group, NLB Montenegrobanka has helped to forge important economic links between Slovenia and Montenegro. By providing consumer loans for goods manufactured by Slovene producers, the bank has helped Slovene companies to enter the Montenegrin market. At the same time it provides loans and other forms of export financing to Montenegrin companies exporting to Slovenia.

Privredna Banka Zagreb continues to be the leader of the banking pack in Croatia thanks to its popular combination of core banking services allied with specialist leasing, real estate and fund management capabilities. Its 230-strong branch network and extensive electronic distribution channels give it the leading position in the credit and debit card market and more than 77.5% of total transactions were carried out electronically.

A part of the RZB group since 2003, Priorbank is one of the two largest banks in Belarus, alongside last year’s winner, Belagroprombank. It is also the only privately owned bank in Belarus’s top six banks by size. It made significant strides forward in 2007: assets grew by 48%, loans by 44% and deposits by 32%. The bank gained more than 134,000 new customers last year, bringing its customer base above the 750,000 mark, while the number of branches grew from 61 in 2006 to 81 by the end of 2007. Return on equity was up by one-quarter, while profit after tax rose by one-third.

CBOE executed 33.98% of total options volume last month, up from 32.08% in May. The International Securities Exchange executed 26.78% of total order flow, down from 28.17% in May. Overall, the options industry traded 304,003,964 contracts, up 36% over a year ago, according to the Options Industry Council.

Raiffeisen Bank managed to extend its market leadership in Albania, despite increased competition from such rivals as Banka Kombetare Tregtare and American Bank of Albania. Raiffeisen Bank Albania is firmly ranked as the number one bank by assets, deposits and loans, on both a corporate and retail basis. The bank continues to extend its client coverage and now has 97 branches, almost three times those of its nearest rival; 154 ATMs, double its closest competitor’s; and more than 400 point-of-sales terminals. The bank also extended its mobile banking team, reaching out to previously unbanked sections of the population. Thanks to this expansion, Raiffeisen Bank managed to grow its customer base by 14% in 2007, which helped it double its retail lending, while corporate loans rose by 45%. Growth did not come at the cost of profitability, however. The bank reported a cost-income ratio of 40% and a pre-tax return on equity of 58%.

Despite a challenging political and economic environment in Hungary, OTP Bank continues to perform well, registering a net profit of Ft141.7 billion ($907.5 million) in 2007, up more than 11% on 2006. OTP dominates all segments of the Hungarian banking market, accounting for more than 50% of municipal loans and deposits, more than 30% of retail deposits and loans as well as 10% of the corporate segment. With more than 400 branches, it is by far the largest retail bank in Hungary, with almost 4.6 million customers, but also services more than 200,000 corporate clients. The bank has invested heavily in technology with the result that its award-winning OTPdirekt internet banking channel was used by more than 1.5 million customers in 2007, giving it a best-in-class 38% market share. Its telephone banking services have also proved a hit, servicing more than 50% of all Hungarians using mobile phones. In corporate banking, the bank offers an extensive range of services spanning leasing, forfaiting, factoring, project finance and syndicated loans in both forint and foreign currencies. The bank also has a highly successful asset management arm, OTP Fund Management, that manages building society, health fund and insurance portfolios as the portfolio of the National Deposit Insurance Fund, Investor Protection Fund and Guarantee Fund of Pension Funds, which were established by the Hungarian state to protect investors’ interests. OTP Fund Management has a 32.4% market share, with assets under management growing by 25% in 2007 to Ft815.1 billion.

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