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Research forms a strategic priority
- Recognized expertise
- Daily publications and analysis geared to client needs
- Six complementary research teams
Research constitutes a core component of Natixis' client-driven approach. Our various research teams publish analyses and articles on a daily basis with a view to focusing clients' investment strategies and assisting in Natixis' financial innovation processes.
Economic research: a commanding reputation
Client-driven
The economic research unit headed by Patrick Artus operates as an independent, client-driven centre of multi-disciplinary expertise. All in all, some 40 of the world's key economies are covered, including the main emerging countries. The range of research services spans economic tracking, economic and financial forecasts, analysis of fixed-income, forex and equity markets, country analyses and investment strategies. The research team also takes part in regular client meetings and major events organised on behalf of clients in conjunction with Natixis' sales teams.
Diverse range of publications
A well-targeted and diversified range of publications provides astute and directly useable information for clients to focus their investment strategies.
The range of publications is organised according to broad themes:
- News: including Flashes, which provide in-depth themed analysis of economic trends, Special Reports, Eco Weekly and Reactions
- Markets: this category comprises Markets Weekly, which assesses the week's key macroeconomic data, Commo Weekly, which deals with commodities, Daily Round-up, the monthly Inflation-linked and the quarterly Hedge Fund Trends
- Monthly notes: this range of publications provides economic analysis or economic forecasts by region or currency zone (United States, Asia, the eurozone etc.) and market-oriented publications such as Asset Allocation and Credit Macro
- indicators: especially the Leading Indicator of French Economic Activity and the Risk-Perception Index
- academic publications: including Special Papers and Working Papers.
Equity research: Highly commended research
The 60-strong team of Paris-based analysts is regularly commended in industry polls and tracks 350 European listed companies, 55% of which are French.
The US subsidiary, Natixis Bleichroeder Inc., gives Natixis clients privileged access to the North American market. Some 20 senior analysts based in New York and Houston cover companies in the energy, healthcare and media sectors.
Credit research: cutting-edge sector know-how
The credit research team furnishes comprehensive analysis and permanent coverage of some 100 European and North American issuers, plus the main private issuers on the eurozone bond market. The team commands extensive know-how in the telecoms, automotive, utilities, retailing, industrial and European banking sectors, as well as in the ABS field. The various credit research publications deliver high-quality analysis that facilitates financial-market decision-making for our clients.
The Relative Value team carries out the bank's relative-value market analysis to pinpoint the best entry time for products and to offer clients the most attractive investment opportunities. This tracking appears in publications destined for interest-rate and forex products (Trade Ideas, Market Focus). Numerous pricers and quantitative tools to aid decision-making are available on line:
- Swap & Volatility curves is a tool which facilitates the downloading of the past performance of any rate, flattener, butterfly, volatility, and to regress it against another financial variable (rate, slope, butterfly, volatility) in order to obtain the Z-score, the forward breakeven rate, etc.
- Natixis Pricers enable standard trade pricers to be created based on swaptions (conditional curve trades, cross-market trades, straddles and strangles, etc.)
- "Portfolio Management" provides performance measures (monthly yield distribution, Sharpe and Sortino ratios, etc.) of a bespoke portfolio built using a selection of equity, bond, credit, hedge-fund and monetary indices.
Quantitative research: at the heart of financial innovation
Evolving models
Seven teams of financial engineers (100 people in total) are tasked with assisting the bank's financial innovation processes and ensuring we remain competitive in highly demanding and fast-changing markets. Dubbed “quants” in trading-room jargon, these highly qualified personnel respond to requests from the bank's front offices and asset managers. Based in Paris and New York, they work closely with structurers and fund managers to design mathematical and statistical models for valuing financial products – especially derivatives and complex structured transactions – as well as asset allocation models. They are also responsible for calculating risk hedging requirements. Financial engineers assist IT teams in incorporating their models into position tracking systems. These models are constantly adapted according to the needs of the bank's front-office personnel and asset managers.
Technology watch
The complexity of financial innovations and the speed at which they spread to highly competitive markets create a vital need for a highly qualified team of financial engineers to stay abreast of the latest industry developments and to constantly adjust products and the relevant valuation and risk-measurement techniques accordingly. In order to remain competitive, Natixis' quantitative research team keeps a close watch on the latest research conducted by the world's finest university research teams and swiftly disseminates new findings within the bank. This technology watch is supported by the Natixis Foundation, which is tasked with coordinating research under the leadership of Michel Crouhy. The foundation provides a technology watch service and promotes research and related events in the various areas of the quantitative finance field (market finance, credit, risk management, asset management and statistical finance).
By developing a specialisation in convertible-bond research, Natixis' convertible-bond sales team provides clients with varied management profiles key information to assist them in their investment decision-making process. Research is geared towards factual analysis (technical information sheets on new issues, analysis of financial events affecting convertible-bond transactions), periodic (Focus papers on issuers, sectors, etc.) and recurring analysis (morning messages, quantitative equity analysis and monthly publication of a convertible-bond stock guide).
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E-BUSINESS SERVICES
ECONOMIC RESEARCH
Economy Flash
Weekly
Special Report
Leading Indicator of France
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