Barclays' head of USD swaps trading left for a hedge fund

Justin Firmino, the head of USD swaps trading at Barclays, is understood to be leaving the bank. He is also understood to be going to a hedge fund. 

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Barclays declined to comment. There are unconfirmed reports that he's off to a hedge fund.

Firmino spent six years at Barclays after joining from Citi in 2019. He was promoted to managing director in 2023. 

Firmino is Canadian and attended University of Toronto in his youth. 

Firmino may end up joining Brevan Howard. Barclays Brevan Howard connection is strong. Carl Scott, a former head of EMEA rates trading, left in March 2024 for Brevan Howard. Michael Lubinksy, a senior rates trader at the bank in the US, joined Brevan in August 2024. Ankur Aneja, one of Barclays' top MDs in euro swaps trading, resigned last month and is having some time out. Maybe Aneja will join Brevan one day too. 

Barclays is focused on cutting costs and maximizing returns in its investment bank. Members of the US rates team have complained that bonuses in recent years have been disappointing. Barclays has three areas of strategic focus in its global markets business - equity derivatives, securitised products, and European rates. It may want to focus on retaining its US rates traders as well.

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