Tell us about your organisation LUXSIPA and its purpose?
LUXSIPA is a young association founded a few years ago by various players from the financial centre, with the aim of promoting a class of assets as a complement to traditional financial products, namely structured products.
Often confused with non-transparent products such as we saw during the 2008 financial crisis, structured products offered to both professional and private clients are, admittedly, complex products, but they have found their place perfectly in the constitution of a modern portfolio.
What are the market trends in your sector?
There have been a multitude of developments in the market that have made structured products more popular: a set of payoffs under a guaranteed, partially guaranteed or risky capital envelope; minimum size for tailor-made products; the emergence of live pricing platforms to enhance offerings to investors; full transparency on costs and charges; a focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) products, particularly at the level of the assets used, such as thematic indices, or at the level of the issuing vehicle, which may be of a "green bond" character.
Which training solutions do you offer and what are the benefits? For whom is this training programme intended?
In partnership with the House of Training, the association offers a three-day certified pathway. The aim is to offer very high-quality training with a partner which has a long and exemplary reputation on the Luxembourg financial centre.
The training is divided into three parts:
A general overview of structured products
The components of a structured products
Concrete examples of products, their structures, and pricings
The course is aimed at market professionals such as private bankers, financial advisors, wealth managers, asset managers, trading room operators, but also compliance, legal and risk management specialists.
Understanding Structured Products Certificate
The certification is organised in collaboration with LUXSIPA. LUXSIPA's mission is to promote and position the Luxembourg structured products industry in a quality segment at the service of market players and public authorities. The Association maintains close links with the ABBL and is recognised by the Luxembourg financial industry as a center of competence for any subject relating to structured products.
How did the launching of this programme work?
A first training course was offered in November 2022. To make the training more dynamic and interactivity, two trainers animated the training programme. A particularity of the course was to give individual access to product pricing platforms, to get away from pure theory and understand the impact of parameters on the conditions and characteristics of a structured product. The audience very much appreciated this practical part.
Tell us about your new partnership with House of Training and your development plans? What is your experience as a trainer and partner of the major player in continuing vocational training?
The support of the House of Training in our training project was of remarkably high quality. Intense discussions on the course and our needs (individual laptops, configuration of the training room, etc.) prior to the training, resulted in an important level of satisfaction from all those involved. Promotion of the training via all available channels at the House of Training meant that this certified training programme found its place in the training offers catalogue.
The programme trainers
Fabrice Todeschini is Group Head of Structured Solutions at Quintet Europe S.A (formerly KBL Luxemburg).
Fabien Lebayon is Head of the Structured Products team at Intesa Sanpaolo Wealth Management.
Sven Conter is a team leader in the Financial Markets Business Unit at Spuerkeess..
Pierre Stoll is head of the structured products team at Banque de Luxembourg.
