Beat von Gunten, global head of sales for Investor Products & Equity Derivatives (IP&ED) at Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in London, is set to join BNP Paribas as head of client strategy, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
SRP understands that von Gunten, who will leave the UK bank at the end of this week, will join the French bank in a role to strengthen BNP Paribas's global equities and commodity derivatives (GECD) franchise, which is run by Yann Gérardin, global head of GECD, and Olivier Osty, deputy global head of GECD. Von Gunten will report directly to Osty.
Von Gunten, has been in charge of offloading RBS's IP&ED business, along with RBS's global head of derivative products and solutions and counterparty exposure management Martijn van Pieterson, since the bank announced in 2013 that it would exit the structured products market and sell its structured retail investor products and equity derivatives business.
SRP also confirmed that RBS has created a "tail" team which will provide "effective oversight of the processes and services that will be outsourced" to BNP Paribas as well as "appropriate oversight", day-to-day management and the active wind-down of the portfolio not being transferred to the French bank.
Von Gunten was hired by RBS from JPMorgan in 2010 where he was global head of cross-asset structured products sales and marketing (SPDM). Prior to that he was European head structured products for distributor marketing.
Von Gunten left his position at JPMorgan at the end of March 2009 as part of a wider restructuring of the structured products business at the US investment bank. Prior to being appointed head of equity derivatives investor marketing, von Gunten was responsible for JPMorgan's Europe, Middle East & Africa structured retail products team reporting to David Herzberg, global head of equity derivatives, and Tony Best, European head of investor marketing.
RBS declined to comment, while BNP Paribas did not return calls. Von Gunten could not be reached by press time.