Andrew Spence, a member of the discretionary structured products distributor team at Williams de Broe in London, told the editors, "The consistently high quality of service and products Morgan Stanley produces has been impressive. Their dedication to identifying secondary market opportunities is a facet of their service that sets them apart from other providers in this space."

Talking about the VolNet Index series launched by Morgan Stanley in May 2011, which offers investors risk and exposure management techniques, Spence said, "Morgan Stanley has built a deep understanding of the market and our client needs, and 2011 has been no exception; the team designed and delivered some of the most innovative products on the market. In particular, the Ucits offering has gone from strength to strength."

The editors cited Morgan Stanley for its fund on the back of the VolNet Hedge strategy, which offers investors long-bias exposure to the variance of the S&P 500 Index, based on prevailing volatility levels and term structure. The strategy also allocates a proportion to short-variance strategy, which helps reduce negative carry of the long exposure.

Peter Thompson from the structuring team at Arena Wealth Management in London told the editors, "Morgan Stanley's VolNet strategy is a genuine innovation in the volatility space."

The Structured Products article also mentioned that, in ongoing uncertain global equity markets and with a rising desire for simple growth products, Morgan Stanley has combined an attractive fixed-return potential with a defensive barrier, allowing investors to receive a fixed return if markets fall.

The Structured Product awards are decided by the editorial team following a competitive pitching process and numerous client references.