SRP Digest: Complexity in Focus and Shifting Asset Class Exposures

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From the UK’s tightening grip on Consumer Duty rules to Korea’s booming autocall sales, the structured products landscape is buzzing with activity. Regulators, issuers, and investors are all on the move — the FCA is sharpening its oversight of complex ETPs, Switzerland and Italy posted strong Q2 issuance, and Latin America is embracing actively managed certificates (AMCs).

Meanwhile, data management challenges are putting pressure on global institutions, and equity-linked strategies are showing signs of rotation as index and rate-linked products regain ground. Across markets, the focus is clear: smarter structures, stronger governance, and a renewed search for stability amid uncertainty.

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This Week's Intel

From the UK FCA’s latest development on Consumer Duty rules to AMCs' adoption in Switzerland and Latin America to Korea’s autocalls, here’s the latest news roundup brought by SRP news desk.

The UK Financial Conduct Authority said it is planning to amend its Consumer Duty rules, and an area of ongoing work for the regulator over the coming months will be complex exchange-traded products (ETPs).

The regulator conducted a review of trading apps last November and is currently assessing whether firms are meeting Consumer Duty expectations for retail customers investing in complex ETPs. During the review, the UK regulator found that some product providers had not specified their target market at a sufficiently granular level, noting that in some instances, lower-risk and less complex products were offered alongside more complex or high-risk ones.

Financial institutions worldwide are facing an operational crisis rooted in poor data management for complex investment products, with deficiencies threatening profitability, compliance and client trust, according to a new report by S&P Global’s Crisil.

While structured products are valued for their bespoke payoffs, their complexity poses significant challenges for accurate, timely data handling, according to the study.

The market has seen renewed interest in equity factor-based strategies, and investors are increasingly interested in products that provide downside protection and risk management following April’s ‘Liberation Day’-triggered market correction, Spyros Mesomeris, UBS’ global head of structuring, told SRP in an interview. 

Deep diving into European markets via SRP data, Italy’s public offering structured products market saw estimated sales rise 36% to €12 billion (US$13.9 billion) in the second quarter of the year compared to the prior year’s period.

In Switzerland, an estimated CHF10.1 billion (US$12.6 billion) in sales was collected from 33,594 products that struck in Switzerland in August, up 64% year-on-year but down 30% on a monthly basis. During the period, the database registered 20 actively managed certificates (AMCs), which display some thematic and diversification trends.

Those AMCs ranged from equity conviction baskets such as the LUKB Asserta US Selection and Asserta Crispr/Cas9 Basket, capturing US growth and biotech innovation, to niche sustainable themes like the Kepler Nuclear Thematic Conviction Basket, positioned on the energy transition narrative.

Luma Financial Technologies is in active discussions with its institutional and private bank clients serving Latin American investors to also adopt AMCs, a segment where the Cincinnati-based tech platform expects to see US$5 billion in annualised issuance over the next five years.

Among people moves, Barclays appointed Anika Goel as managing director to lead quantitative investment solutions (QIS) structuring in Americas, based in New York. She joined the UK bank from Morgan Stanley, where she spent 17 years, most recently serving as head of equity structuring, Americas.

S&P Dow Jones Indices, Morningstar Indexes and Cboe Global Markets have reshuffled their teams following some high-profile departures.

In Asia, Savio Joseph, UBS’ former head of Asia Pacific flow derivatives and solutions sales, headed to Citadel Securities to take up a newly-created role as head of Asia Pacific institutional equity and equity derivatives sales, based in Hong Kong SAR.

In Korea, sales of structured products rose to KRW6.88 trillion (US$4.84 billion) in September, up over 57% from a year ago and 8.7% from the previous month, according to SRP data. Equity-linked securities (ELS), also known as capital-at-risk autocallable notes, saw sales jump 29% to KRW2.2 trillion on both a year-on-year and month-on-month basis.

In the country’s exchange-traded products market, the industry raised hopes for digital asset ETFs and discussed the challenges to overcome during a panel at the Korea Capital Markets Conference 2025 held in Seoul. Covered call strategies and various option-based products were also in focus.

Australian advisors have shown strong adoption of smart beta exchange-traded funds (ETFs), especially over the last year, according to an annual survey by VanEck. More than half of advisers (50.13%) had replaced market cap or passive exposures in their client portfolios with smart beta, marking an increase of 10.77% since 2022, the survey showed.

Last but not least, FVC’s Tim Mortimer explored Darwin autocalls – the hybrid autocall structure introduced to the market in the late 2010s – as the market seeks new solutions for investors.

This Week's Analysis

The second quarter of 2025 recorded changes around the use of stocks, indices and interest rates in the European structured products market.

While equities maintained their dominant role, the quarter was marked by a resurgence in index-linked strategies and resilience in rate-linked structures. This mix illustrates investors’ search for diversification and stability against a backdrop of persistent macroeconomic uncertainty.

Europe: asset classes – market share by sales volumes

Products linked to stocks and baskets of stocks dominated the market, representing 53% of activity in Q2 2025. This strong weighting is largely driven by their popularity in Switzerland, which accounted for 62% of the stocks-linked segment in Q2 2025 (after 69% in Q1).

By comparison, Italy and France accounted for 14% and 11%, respectively.

Stocks-linked market share, however, declined by 2.4% versus Q1 and was down 1.5% versus Q2 2024, suggesting some retreat.

Year-on-year (YoY) sales volumes still grew by 12%, but quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) activity slipped eight percent, showing that momentum has softened. The decline was most pronounced in Switzerland, where equities traditionally dominate, though the overall weight of stocks in that market remains exceptionally high at 76%.

Equity index-linked products strengthened their market share, rising to 24%, up by more than four percent from Q1 2025. Sales growth accelerated by 16% QoQ and 14% YoY, marking one of the strongest recoveries across asset classes. Germany and France were central to this rebound, with indices capturing 49% and 40% of the traded notional, respectively, as investors leaned toward more diversification.

Products linked to interest rates held a stable 12% market share. Sales volumes rose 18% YoY, underscoring continued investor confidence in defensive strategies, though activity moderated (- 9.0% QoQ). Italy stood out, with rate-linked products making up 30% of the local market.

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Structured for Volatility: Global Market Sentiment Survey 2025/2026

This first-of-its-kind global survey, in partnership with LPA, combines qualitative and quantitative data to provide a benchmark outlook for 2025 and beyond.

Key findings include:

• Market fundamentals remain dominant – 75% see economic and financial conditions as the key driver into 2026. Investor demand, regulation and technology are important but secondary.
• Regional growth, no single breakout market – Western Europe leads (48%), followed by North America (41%) and Asia-Pacific ex-China (40%). Momentum is also building in the Middle East.
• AI tipped as the next game changer – Nearly 40% identify AI as the most transformative technology, expected to reshape structuring, pricing and distribution.
• Resilience despite uncertainty – Issuance and volumes are projected to rise into 2026, reinforcing structured products’ role as a diversifier and stable growth opportunity.

Download the report now.