HSBC researcher had London's best Halloween party

As we reported last week, Citadel and Citadel Securities have become famous for their annual Halloween parties, financed by Ken Griffin. 

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In London, though, Citadel does not have a firmwide Halloween party. If you wanted to attend an event, it will therefore have been necessary to make your own arrangements. The best person to know for a private Halloween party in London may not even be at Citadel, but at HSBC.

We understand that Charlie Rothbarth, an equity researcher at HSBC held one of London's best private Halloween parties last week. Titled, "Your Worst Nightmare," it was not attended by HSBC staff but by Rothbarth's friends, several of whom seem to work in banking. 

Rothbarth didn't respond to a request to comment for this article, but there's plenty of time to befriend him before Halloween 2026. 

Despite its name, the recent party is understood to have been fun. Rothbarth, who's thought to be related to Giles Rothbarth at BlackRock, survived the worst nightmare of some HSBC colleagues who lost their jobs earlier this year when the bank cut 25 people in its London research team. He's since expanded his remit and covers "platforms," including US tech stocks, after joining HSBC from Berenberg in 2024 to cover consumer and retail.

The next big event in the UK is, needless to say, bonfire night. This is less suited to private parties in London, but senior people with country houses may buy-in some sparklers. 

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