Derivatives forecast to make gradual return

Derivatives have become a bit of a bugbear for some regulators. They blame certain unregulated, over-the-counter instruments for exacerbating the financial crisis but sometimes lump them together with more common, listed derivatives.

The Gulf is no exception. As regulators across the world study the entrails of the financial crisis for lessons, there will be a natural slowdown in their introduction in the Gulf as well, bankers say. But most expect it only to be a matter of time before their use is more widely sanctioned.

Even in the relatively unsophisticated Gulf, many banks dabble in derivatives, but occasionally to disastrous effect.