| 'Centre of excellence' attracts new companies |
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| As Ireland's reputation as a 'centre of excellence' for securitisation receives a wider audience, 2006 saw a number of global companies make Dublin their European securitisation base. |
The past year saw a number of securitisation related firms set up in Dublin, further cementing Dublin's reputation as a 'centre of excellence' in this sector.
In 2006, Guggenheim Partners, the US diversified financial services firm, chose Dublin over London for its new European collateralised loan obligation (CLO) operation.
Adrian Duffy, managing director of the new operation, told FINANCE that the pool of talent in Dublin was a major factor in the firm choosing the location over London. He said, 'I like the notion of being able to build a team and hold onto them. London is too competitive for talent'. Other key factors in Guggenheim choosing Dublin included the low tax rate and its proximity to London and other major European centres.
The new operation will employ around ten people initially, with two/four moving over from the US operations, and six being recruited locally. Duffy is moving over from the US, where Guggenheim started its leveraged finance division five years ago, and is now a sizeable player, with $10 billion in assets under management.
In June 2006, Structured Credit Holdings plc (SCH), an independent wholesale financial services business focused on the international credit risk transfer market, set up a Dublin operation having raised $208 million in equity to finance the project, from a list of shareholders including Aquiline Capital Partners; Caisse de d?p?t et placement du Qu?bec; Pacific Corporate Group; Calyon and Triad Guaranty Inc.
In early 2007, the operation applied for a banking license, and it focuses on two segments of the credit risk transfer market: structured credit transactions and securitisation transactions. It originates portfolios of credit risk from commercial and investment banks and other financial institutions and underwrites the credit risk through structured credit transactions.
The firm also has two wholly owned subsidiaries, Structured Credit Advisors, Inc. in New York and Structured Credit Advisers, Ltd. in London, to assist it with developing relationships with counterparties, providing research, creating state of the art risk analytics and monitoring market activities.
Major US financial institution Wachovia Securities also established a Dublin operation during the year, which is headed up by Mike Buttner, and employs around 15 people. A fully licensed bank, Wachovia International Finance, will offer warehousing facilities to Wachovia's London operation. |
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