Creativity and growth look they’re in for a rough ride in the year ahead.

Obviously, it’s unthinkable to start 2012 by trying to use the same methods that spawned the 2008 crisis. It’s essential to find appropriate solutions and measures to deal with what’s been happening for the last few years. However, nothing really efficient can be implemented blindly, using targeted animosity and fear of the future as the main guidelines.

In general, the things I read or heard about in 2011 to deal with the crisis left a bitter taste and a strange feeling that we were treading water or worse, starting to sink deeper into the quagmire.

There’s no doubt that the crisis we have had to face since 2008 is unprecedented in its global dimension, but it’s not in being “narrow-minded” or “uptight” that we’ll get over the many hurdles ahead.

I am convinced that, directly or indirectly, we all have our share of responsibility for the current state of affairs. We all expected and believed in returns on supposedly risk-free investments and we all thought that the financial sector would be the new Eldorado, like the dotcoms of previous years, and that it would spur on infinite global growth. The same errors in judgment, the same analysis, the same madness… Since on the surface, these two phenomena are not quite the same, the comparison may not be obvious, but ultimately the same lines of thinking lead to the same hazards.  

In this context, it’s hard to blame the media and politicians for their reactions, in criticizing an industry that has shown itself incapable of reforming or regulating itself and to present a politically acceptable image of itself.

The complex paradox of our politicians is to walk the fine line between being politically intelligent and economically foolish!
In this light, it’s important to remember that the financial industry is above all an industry. While some countries are willing to subsidize the repatriation of offshore industrial activities, they treat the financial industry as a case apart.  It’s important to stress that the financial industry creates real employment and that it contributes to the wealth and health of our societies. So, let’s not fall into the trap of pushing financial companies irremediably offshore. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the financial industry, like all other industries, should be allowed to regulate itself without limitations, as has been the case in the recent past in our democracies.

Measures such as the Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) or added levies on financial incomes or High-Frequency Trading are treated in the media tendentiously and we are often on the borderline of disinformation. Clearly, the financial industry is seriously misunderstood and attacks are often way off the mark. Just a few examples to illustrate this point: it is widely recognized that paying employees in part on equity-based profit-sharing schemes (shares and stock options) is a good idea since it provides long-term income based on shared success. Why then tax these forms of compensation more than traditional salaries and why attack them in the media, making them totally unacceptable and impossible to use? The FTT is another example. All serious studies have shown that this tax will not work, simply because it is impossible to apply worldwide, while financial transactions are global. It makes more sense to tax post-profits, which is already the case for financial incomes and, in France, through recently-adopted levies on financial companies. In any case, it would be best to ensure that companies in all sectors actually pay the taxes they should, which doesn’t seem to be the case right now.

It’s difficult to criticize politicians for trying to propose short-term solutions and to constantly speak out on these sensitive subjects since, after all, almost all our democracies function with the constant pressure of short electoral mandates, driving politicians to campaign on an almost permanent basis.  

I therefore hope (naively perhaps) that 2012 will bring us a renewed sense of dialogue and empathy. I also hope that the upcoming presidential elections in France will not generate demagogical competition, but that they will lead to greater unity between European democracies in their shared governance principles to establish a stable base to build a solid future, independent of electoral opportunism and detached from the fear and anger generated by the current crisis.

Happy New Year to all.

Dominique Ceolin, CEO of ABC arbitrage group.

Jean-Pierre once again gains recognition from his peers. On Monday, 5^th December, at the Soirée des Champions ceremony, an annual event that rewards French sailors who have contributed to competitive sailing, Jean-Pierre Dick was named Sailor of the Year 2011 by a 20-member jury chaired by Isabelle Autissier, which included eminent personalities of the sailing community, journalists and elected members of the French Sailing Federation (Fédération Française de Voile)

This distinction caps an exceptional year for Jean-Pierre, with two major victories aboard Virbac-Paprec 3: the Barcelona World Race (with Loïck Peyron) and the Transat Jacques Vabre (with Jérémie Beyou).

In 2012, he will undertake a new challenge: the Vendée Globe, a solo round-the-world race with no stops, which is his absolute goal and dream.

The ABC arbitrage group is prouder than ever to be one of his loyal supporters and a partner of this exceptional sailor, as well as backing a team of impassioned people dedicated to a unique project.

You can find detailed information on Jean-Pierre on his site: http://www.jpdick.com/

After having led the race for 11 days, Jean-Pierre Dick and Jérémie Beyou crossed the finish line at Puerto Limon on Friday, 18^th November at 9.15 and 54 seconds (CET – 2.15 and 54 seconds, local time), winning the 2011 Transat Jacques Vabre race.

Their official time is pegged at 15 days, 18 hours, 15 minutes and 54 seconds. They sailed (in real terms) for 5,167 nautical miles at an average speed of 13.66 knots.

Despite difficult conditions, the two sailors maintained a particularly fast pace in the final stages of the race. They not only won the race, but also beat the record for the event established by Safran in 2009. Jean-Pierre Dick and Jérémie Beyou arrived one hour and seven minutes ahead of the previous best time, established by Marc Guillemot and Charles Caudrelier two years ago. Their new time now becomes the benchmark for the Atlantic crossing between Le Havre and Puerto Limon.

This is the third time that Jean-Pierre Dick has won the Transat Jacques Vabre, following on his victories with Nicolas Abiven in 2003 and Loïc Peyron in 2005. He has also won the Barcelona World Race with the latter. With his boat Virbac Paprec 3, christened in 2010, Jean-Pierre is in a winning spiral, as is his co-skipper, Jérémie Beyou, who won the Solitaire du Figaro this summer. This was the first time the two men sailed the high seas together, capping their partnership with a clear victory.

We congratulate these champions and in particular Jean-Pierre who, with this triumph, wins his fifth major title on the IMOCA circuit in 10 years. A veritable exploit!

ABC arbitrage group is proud to be one of the team’s faithful partners. 

On October 31, 2011, Thomas Normand has accomplished his dream in his first transatlantic race. He’s climbed on the podium as runner-up in the final standings of the Charente-Maritime/Bahia Transat 6.50 2011 race (Prototypes category).

Thomas magnificently organized his second place and, given that he was a rookie, ran an amazing race. We congratulate him for this remarkable achievement!

An extraordinary experience!

“This is a very emotional moment for me,” declared Thomas Normand at the end of the race. “For three weeks, you stay completely focused on your performance and in five seconds, it all comes to a stop! You feel all your senses coming back at once. When I stepped on to the pontoon, I felt my taste buds again, at the same time as my hearing, sense of feeling and smell returned. The Transat is really an amazing experience, but I also realized how dangerous this sport is when I was going through the tougher moments. You feel lonely, sometimes abandoned and even paranoid. I was surprised at the psychological difficulty of the ordeal. It’s a real introspective challenge, where you’re constantly pushing yourself beyond your limits and you have to dig deep to find the resources to keep on going and stay in the race.”

One of his biggest supporters, Jean-Pierre Dick, the skipper of Virbac-Paprec 3 and head of the Absolute Dreamer team, had this to say about Thomas’s achievement: “Thomas has accomplished a truly controlled and inspired race. For a first transat, competing against seasoned opponents, he has really impressed me because he himself was not impressed by the stakes involved or the competition! I’m really proud of the junior member of our team. He’s a determined young man, he had a dream and he’s managed to achieve his goal the first time round. He certainly shows promise for the future!”

Dominique Ceolin, President of ABC arbitrage group, the team’s sponsor and the personal godfather of the boat, is happy to see Thomas’s talent rewarded in such a spectacular way, confirming that he is capable of improving at an exceptional speed and achieve a high level of performance while carefully managing risks. 

For the second year running, the ABC arbitrage group has won the Grand Prix Stratégies du Design. This award, granted by a jury of communication specialists, is France’s most prestigious distinction in corporate communication.
The Grand Prix Stratégies du Design 2011 was given to ABC arbitrage for its “Goûtez-moi” annual report (corporate communication category) at the official ceremony, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the event on 5^th October 2011 at the Espace Pierre Cardin in Paris

In line with its longstanding policy of innovating and producing atypical annual reports, the 2010 edition took the form of an unusual cookery book. Cuisine, whether classical or molecular, gastronomical or home-made, offers endless variations and challenges, and is therefore a perfect analogy for the business of arbitrage. A limited collector’s edition of the report was printed with an edible cover.

The award distinguishes ABC arbitrage’s daring approach and its creativity, breaking with the traditional concepts and codes of the financial industry, offering a mix of controlled impertinence and explaining a rather rigorous business in an entertaining way. This way of presenting the company has always been well received by the group’s stakeholders and the community at large, and ABC arbitrage will continue to produce distinctive publications, designing and delivering its communication in a way that clearly expresses its special position in the financial markets.

The ABC arbitrage group accepted the Grand Prix with a great deal of pride and pleasure, sharing the award with all the members of the talented team at its partner agency Aristophane (Mickael, Delphine, Julie and Yann in particular), and with its copywriter Michel Celemenski.