Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Certification
Transitions
Awards Recognition
Tools used
Interests
Timeline
Generic

WASIM RAJA

Associate Director - Investment Banking

Summary

Highly skilled and competent Investment Banking Operations professional with over 15 years of experience in Middle Office, Trade Support, Prime Brokerage, Confirmations, Settlements, FI, Swaps and Derivatives. Proven expertise in life cycle events, exception management, reconciliation, and new client/broker setups. Exceptional team and stakeholder management abilities, with a track record of collaborating with various business functions and ensuring compliance with regulatory frameworks such as Dodd-Frank and EMIR.

Delivered 1.5 FTE by Automation, Kaizen ideas, Alteryx solution

Overview

20
20
years of professional experience
4007
4007
years of post-secondary education
3
3
Certifications
4
4
Languages

Work History

Associate Director

UBS India
07.2020 - Current
  • Responsible for day-to-day operations and risk mitigation, providing updates on Process / People /System issues to both India & London higher management.
  • Conducting periodic process / SOP reviews for ensuring strict adherence to the process parameters/systems as per defined guidelines.
  • Responsible for providing approvals for process deliverables and authorizations.
  • New Client / broker setups, by working closely with Onboarding/Offboarding teams.
  • Existing client / broker setups in multiple internal applications & systems.
  • Manage stakeholder escalations, risk calls, and aged item resolution across front, middle, and back-office teams.
  • Prepare and present MO Quarterly update & monthly pillar & performance updates to higher mgmt.
  • Monitor and ensure break exception queues are cleared on time as per agreed SLA with stake holders.
  • Understanding the Front Office traders & stake holders needs and cascading that information to the team members and making a note of any observation post implementation.
  • Responsible for timely escalation to Trading desk on any DKs trades / Buy-ins.
  • Ensure all the trades feed down to Risk management system.
  • Reconcile Positional and transactional trades across books and records between Front, Middle and Back Office systems on T1 basis, Swap and expiry reset processing, Static and reference data set up for smooth trade processing Monitor and liaise with trading in case of missing booking / mismatch on all lifecycle events for equity such as Partial/Fully Termination/Novation, Positions movement between Fungible Sedols, Trade amendments due to Corporate action events on T0 basis.
  • Manage and update Benchmark prices from Bloomberg/Reuters, instrument setup for various exchange, clearing fails and update relevant mappings to avoid any fails and facilitate Desk.
  • Investigate Hedge rec, QMTs, work on Internal AUDIT queries, Customer Pre-Alloc trades to final CPTY.
  • Resolve queries from the Desk, Sales, Confirmations, Settlements, Actual-vs-Implied (AVI) breaks, Finance and collateral, controls teams, Account managers, External brokers, provide correct cash settlement of previous/upcoming trades that are booked with dividend and instruct correct cash flows to settlement system and book cash lines in Risk system to adjust PnL in ledger.
  • Set up new broker / clients for desk. Requires filling all forms and documents and getting required approvals.
  • Build Close Working Relationships with Trading Desk, Operations, Finance IT and Valuations teams, stake holders to ensure timely escalation and resolution of breaks.
  • Booking amendments post Front Office approvals to fix the breaks, booking manual ZCB in Risk & bookings system to match client amount or to clear the AVI breaks and share PNL impact details to Trading.
  • Book IFTT cash only booking, ADR fees, management, Retro fees.
  • Publish Monthly Give-up client commission report, IFTT report, Weekly SAR QMT / WIMI/DIM SAR reports.
  • Resolving queries / eco/non-eco discrepancies raised by Confirmations, Settlements, Drafting, Valuations, Collateral, Margins, Controls, Broker match team by liaising with Trading, Sales, Trade Capture, Corporate action team, Front Office, Sales, investigating upstream vs downstream systems, Providing Term sheets, Trade recaps, Bloomberg, Reuters screenshots, Broker confirmations, Booking instructions.
  • Mapping Strategy, Family, Book, Subbook, Owner, Divisor to facilitate Trading Desk to book trades in upstream bookings systems.
  • Monitoring and actioning on queries / requests raised on chat channels by Trading Desk, Sales.
  • Driving the Daily huddle /risk call at SOD, EOD Shuttle, EOD Checklist and Weekly SAR report, Weekly stakeholder/AMs calls, Kaizen inventory call, Daily risk calls, Escalation calls.
  • Leading, mentoring & monitoring the performance of team members to ensure efficiency in process, quality operations.
  • Ensure 300% cross trainings and coverage.
  • Allocating, relocating as well as movement of multi-skilled staff across various workgroups to maintain adequate staffing and efficient utilization of resource.
  • Framing work direction & plan for team members after assessment of their capabilities.
  • Conceptualizing & developing need-based training modules for developing multi skilled work force for utilization within sub processes for optimum efficiency.
  • Providing the cross training and transition update to London and India Management.
  • Conduct regular one on one with all team members in order to make sure and understand their requirements & providing/taking feedback and Perform Annual & Midyear reviews, ratings for the team.
  • Responsible for team member’s grooming and career mapping.
  • Recognizing the outstanding performers in the team and nominating them rewards.
  • Responsible for team training/cross training & conducting assessment of newly recruited associates.
  • To ensure team to participates in CSR and other cultural & Digital events.

Lead Analyst

Cognizant Technology Solution - Client UBS
03.2014 - 07.2020
  • Handling Pre and Post settlement process of Equity Derivatives trades (Equity Derivatives & Total Return Swaps) between UBS and other clients.
  • Pre confirming cash flows with Counterparties to ensure payments and receipts settlement happen on the value date for OTC derivative trades.
  • Working VD–3 on the cash flows, checking and setting up the counterparty SSIs to ensure payment is made prior to currency cutoffs.
  • Interacting with sales, front office, corporate actions team, asset servicing team and confirmation team to resolve the discrepancy with regards to settlements and Cash management team for timely settlement.
  • Responding to Sensitive client queries with an hour as per SLA.
  • Continually monitoring settlement system to ensure day to day cash flow, late booking cash flows and amendments to settlements are worked up on.
  • Investigating post settlement breaks and identifying the root cause and resolve them.
  • Ensuring the quality of deliverables and meeting the SLAs.
  • Providing the management report on a daily basis. (Reports: Rice, Held over, KPI, High risk report).
  • End of the day checks such as, break commentary in TLM, all risk reports, exceptions commentary till VD-2 in settlement system.
  • Performing 4 eye checks for all the emails under review and all the exceptions processed, handling escalations.
  • Giving process training to new joiners on Equity derivatives and Total Return Swaps.
  • Attending calls and meeting with onshore to provide Process related updates.
  • Raising application access request for the new joiner in the time.

Assistant Manager

Wipro Ltd
03.2008 - 03.2013
  • Worked with OTC Derivatives- DTCC confirmations, Internal (Credit / Rates / Equity – London & Zurich settlements) at Wipro Hyderabad.
  • Did remote migration of Total return swaps equity settlements from London to India for new Sabre application.
  • As a SME of OTC Equity Derivative TRS swaps settlements did successful reverse transition from one vendor to another vendor of UBSI.
  • Lead a team for FI CAD & Euroclear settlements team at Wipro Hyderabad.
  • Clearing and Settlement US: The process involves Pre-Settlement, settlement and Fails management of trades booked to settle in Euroclear & CAD Domestic market US region.
  • Total Return Swaps US: The process is related to all pre-settlement activities being carried out of Equity Derivatives to ensure timely and accurate settlement of trades with counterparties. Also migrated TRS settlements process on new application SABRE.
  • Credit Derivatives Internal Settlements: The process involved working with internal clients, UBS Jersey and other PB clients for Interest Rates Swaps and Credit Default Swaps products, Pre-matching & settlement of trades.
  • Credit Derivatives DTCC confirmations: Migrated the process from UBS AG London. Process involved pre-confirming the trades and matching in DTCC. Ensure matching of trades on T+1 and investigating the unmatched and trades with discrepancies. Worked on Back-loading project for sensitive & non sensitive counterparties from Paper to DTCC.
  • Handled team of 5 - Treasury operations – Pre-matching, Settlements, Fails, Nosto & Depot TLM, reconciliation for Euroclear & CAD Domestic market, post settlement. ensure timely and accurate settlement to avoid Buy-in/EFC charges, Client escalation.
  • Preparing process performance summary reports & presenting to Onshore & Offshore management.
  • Maintain existing and develop new controls for the processes to maintaining the agreed SLA and setting up new standards for performance.
  • To handle escalations and difficult client issues.
  • Updating onshore on the fails and unmatched / DK trade on daily risk call and maintaining the data and escalating.
  • Escalating the issues to offshore and onshore management.
  • Liaising with counterparties, Euroclear Bank, different internal & external teams such as Cash management team, Controls, Corporate actions team, Static Team, DTC, onshore, custodian, Trading desk, Middle office, to ensure accurate pre and post-settlement activities of trades.
  • Updating the SOP’s and FMEA’s on a regular basis.
  • Ensuring training new joiners, cross trainings and proper backups in each sub processes.
  • Escalating any error in the process to onshore and offshore management and investigating the root cause and implementing proper control measures.

Certified Officer

ICICI BANK Ltd.
08.2005 - 03.2008
  • Certified officer for NSE (National Stock Exchange) & BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange) to place Buy /Sell Trade orders in Customer’s Trading Accounts through www.icicidirect.com - ICICI Bank is depository participant in NSE & BSE.
  • Guide customer on application navigation and solve the queries related to Online trading and Demat A/c, share Transfers, Dematerialization, Rematerialization, Training customer about trading on phone & emails.
  • Helping customer by raising Service request or Critical request depending on the customer request / complaint related to their Trading Accounts.

Education

Master of Business Administration (MBA) -

Osmania University

Bachelor of Commerce (B. Com Computers) -

SK University

Skills

  • Business Requirements Mapping

  • Process Development

  • Process Implementation & Improvement

  • Client Satisfaction Maximization

  • Process Review

  • SOP Review

  • Escalation Matrix Review

  • Deliverable Accountability

  • SLAs Management / KPIs Management

  • People Leadership

  • Middle Office / Trade support Operations

  • Capital Markets Financing

  • Stakeholder Management

  • Process Migration / Offshoring / Transitions

  • Risk Management

  • Exception Management

  • P&L Adjustments

  • Digital Transformation

  • Project Management

  • Change Management

Certification

PRINCE2

Transitions

  • 2008, DTCC Credit Derivative Confirmation, UK to India (Onsite-London), 04/01/08
  • 2010, Legacy to advanced booking system, UK to India (Remote), 07/01/10
  • 2010, OTC Derivative TRS Settlements, Vendor to Vendor (Reverse), 12/01/10

Awards Recognition

  • Received UBS Thank you Award from client for the team.
  • Received awards at Cognizant - Spot light(thrice), Game changer, Unicorn, Performer of the Quarter(twice).
  • Received Best performing team for my team(twice).
  • Received Kudos from Global IBO Head on becoming Digital champion in 2024.

Tools used

Bloomberg, Reuters, Sabre, Geronimo, COLT, Trade Manager, TRAIANA-HARMONY, BOXER, ALTERYX, TABLEAU, KIBANA, Keylink, JETWEB,SAP , FICO, ADP, SSE NG, DTCC, MARKITWIRE, Clearstream, Euroclear, TLM

Interests

Creating Blogs, Upgrading self with the changes in IT

Timeline

Associate Director

UBS India
07.2020 - Current

Lead Analyst

Cognizant Technology Solution - Client UBS
03.2014 - 07.2020

Assistant Manager

Wipro Ltd
03.2008 - 03.2013

Certified Officer

ICICI BANK Ltd.
08.2005 - 03.2008

Master of Business Administration (MBA) -

Osmania University

Bachelor of Commerce (B. Com Computers) -

SK University

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WASIM RAJAAssociate Director - Investment Banking