Now in their twelfth year, the Swiss Derivative Awards recognize the best structured products. Yesterday, the "Oscars of the derivatives industry" were held at AURA in Zurich. Around 240 top-class guests from Switzerland and abroad came to the event. Since their introduction in 2006, the awards have been supported by SIX Structured Products Exchange as the main sponsor.

The gala event at AURA attracted many guests		Group picture of the winners

This year, André Buck, Head Sales at SIX Swiss Exchange, became a member of the jury comprising six to seven people. The jury, chaired by Prof. Dr. Marc Oliver Rieger, Professor of Finance at the University of Trier, selected the winners from around 80 leverage and investment products submitted. The awards for best Market Maker, presented by Sébastien Neukom, Senior Sales Manager at SIX Structured Products Exchange, went to Bank Vontobel (for leverage products) and Zürcher Kantonalbank (for investment products). The winner, Credit Suisse, accepted the Best Index Product Award, sponsored by SIX SMI Indices, from Christian Bahr, Head Market Data & Analytics at SIX Swiss Exchange.

Bank Vontobel AG was awarded for their market making in leverage products		Zürcher Kantonalbank was awarded for their market making in investment products

The Research Award, presented for the second time, went to Stefanie Baller for her work entitled "Three Essays on Individual Investors' and Issuers' Behavior in the Market for Speculative Exchange-Traded Retail Products". The award recognizes outstanding work by students on the topic of structured products. Prof. Dr. Martin Wallmeier, Professor of Financial Management and Accounting at the University of Fribourg, was called in for this award. Stefanie Baller's work immediately convinced both Prof. Rieger and Prof. Wallmeier, providing a highly extensive analysis of the relation between private investors and issuers in different sub-essays: leverage products and private investors, market-making and socio-economic factors in speculative investments.

Stefanie Baller with Georg von Wattenwyl, Chairman SSPA		The Award for Best Index Product, sponsored by SMI Indices®, went to Credit Suisse

The Swiss Derivative Awards serve to sustainably increase overall understanding and acceptance of structured products. Further information on the awards and photos of the evening can be found at: www.swiss-derivative-awards.ch