Total volume in equity derivatives futures and options registered through NYSE Liffes Bclear OTC wholesale service has just passed 250 million, setting a new record for the fourth consecutive year. Bclear provides a simple and cost-effective way to register and process wholesale derivatives trades through NYSE Liffe to clearing at NYSE Liffe Clearing. This reduces the counterparty, credit, legal and operational risks often associated with OTC trades. Volumes processed through Bclear in the year-to-date are 40% higher than in the same period of 2008.
Having initially launched in October 2005 as an equity derivatives platform covering 300 underlyings from 16 different countries, Bclear today is a cross-asset class platform covering over 1,000 underlyings from 22 countries. In February NYSE Liffe further extended its offering with the launch of thirteen MSCI index futures and in March launched a range of soft commodity products.
Bclears success is due, in part, to the broad adoption by both the buy-side community and member firms benefiting from the broad range of underlyings and flexibility available on the service.
Our Bclear service continues to offer value and flexibility to our customers in these testing times. Our index derivative products and single stock futures franchise propelled the volume growth on Bclear this year, says Ade Cordell, director of OTC Services at NYSE Liffe. 2010 will bring a further broadening of underlyings and products offered on the service.
We are proud to reach this new milestone and my colleagues and I thank our customers and wish them well for the coming year, says Garry Jones, group executive vice president and head of global derivatives at NYSE Euronext.
D.C.