Russia has suffered keenly in the global financial turmoil, and its derivatives market – booming until a year ago – is no exception. Volume in some products collapsed almost overnight. But as the world begins to talk of green shoots, is the Russian futures and options market showing signs of recovery? Agnieszka Troszkiewicz discovers that there is plenty of vigour in the market, with new contracts and hopes of regulatory and tax improvements.
September 2008: stocks tumbled around the world as Lehman Brothers collapsed. Russia’s long oil-fuelled boom suddenly crumbled. Turmoil on the stockmarkets caused several Russian banks to default and seek bailouts.
Amid high volatility, many players withdrew from the Russian derivatives market, making it more expensive to trade – a vicious circle that led to a sharp contraction in activity.
“During the winter and spring, lots of banks actually stopped any activities in derivatives. It was...