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The two-strong trading team
In mid-2019 , Spanish asset manager Bestinver acquired local boutique Fidentiis in a deal that added around ¤ 350 million in assets under management to Bestinver ’ s ¤ 7 billion portfolio . The merger increased the number of funds , portfolio managers and analysts at Bestinver , creating a unique challenge for the two traders that cover execution for the firm as the world battled the global pandemic .
Based in Madrid , head of trading , Alex Roselló , and equity trader , Gustavo Iglesias , are responsible for all execution at Bestinver , trading mostly equities across EMEA , US , Latin America and Asia markets for all funds . It is traditionally a long-only fund asset manager , but it also has a hedge value fund that holds derivatives and shorts , as well as a domestic long short fund .
The two-strong trading operation functions much like a UK desk compared to the traditional domestic Spanish buy-side centralised desk , with strong influence from the City of London as many portfolio managers , both past and present , spent most of their careers in the Square Mile .
Roselló also spent time previously during his career in London working on the sell-side for Deutsche Bank and KBW before his move to Bestinver in Madrid in 2015 . Similarly , Iglesias previously worked on the sell-side before he started out at Bestinver three years ago . While Roselló puts emphasis on the strengths of his relationships , Iglesias has developed
" Although we ’ re based in Spain , in many ways we trade as though we are a London buy-side desk in Madrid ."
ALEX ROSELLÓ , HEAD OF TRADING , BESTINVER
50 // TheTRADE // Summer 2021
Head of trading , Alex Roselló , and equity trader , Gustavo Iglesias , at Bestinver , tell Hayley McDowell about adapting to a surge in trading volumes following the Spanish asset manager ’ s acquisition of Fidentiis , and the challenges that Brexit has posed for European buy-side firms .
a technical skillset , learning about coding and developing tools and taking charge of the desk ’ s vital transaction cost analysis ( TCA ) processes .
Both traders agree their experience has provided a wellrounded understanding of how both sides of the market operate and cemented all-important relationships in the industry that impact the desk ’ s access to information and best practices .
“ When I started out at Bestinver to run the desk it was as though we had order clerks in the sense that they would pick up an order , send it straight through to a broker and pick up the execution at the end of the day with little intraday input ,” Roselló explains .