INTERVIEW: LCH.Clearnet May See New Owners, New Products
11 Settembre 2009 - 1:03PM
Dow Jones News
Clearing house LCH.Clearnet sees a possible new ownership
structure, new services for credit default swaps and access for
buy-side participants in its interest rate swaps business, Michael
March, business development director for LCH.Clearnet told Dow
Jones Newswires Friday.
"Certainly we expect to see new owners and groups of owners," he
said at a press conference in Interlaken. The company is "in talks
with shareholders," on the matter, March said.
He was unable to comment on a Financial Times report Friday that
the company could buy out its shareholders at EUR11 a share and
give a possible controlling stake to a consortium of banks.
March repeated LCH.Clearnet's previously announced plans to
enter the new market for clearing over-the-counter, or OTC, credit
default swaps and its plans to give some buy-side participants
access to its interest rate swap business later this year.
Clearing houses are increasingly offering products aimed at
clearing OTC credit default swaps, the exotic derivatives contracts
that figured heavily in the financial crisis after the demise of
Lehman Brothers one year ago.
Thus far, clearing houses in Europe and the U.S. have had mixed
success with the offering. While the IntercontinentalExchange Inc.
(ICE) has attracted considerable volume, Deutsche Boerse AG
(DB1.XE) has failed thus far to gain traction in the segment and
NYSE Euronext (NYX) said it has put its rival program "under
review" because of low activity.
"It's true that ICE has developed a platform in both the U.S.
and Europe with some good traction," March said.
As for LCH.Clearnet's own service, "it will be for the market to
decide if it wishes to clear through it," he said.
In LCH.Clearnet's OTC interest rate swap clearing business,
March said his company would extend access by the end of the year
to include some buy-side third parties and is "currently working
through the model to ensure the necessary structure for risk
segregation."
"There is increasingly a voice at the table for participation
from the buy side," March said. "We are hoping for a solution by
year end."
March is further confident that LCH.Clearnet can maintain its
dominant position in the market for interbank interest rate swaps
in spite of new competition.
Although LCH.Clearnet currently controls 65% of that market by
value, Nasdaq's OMX Group Inc.'s (NDAQ) International Derivatives
Clearing Group and the CME Group (CME) are attempting to take
market share with their own platforms.
Company Web site: www.lchclearnet.com
-By William Launder; Dow Jones Newswires; +49 69 29 725 515;
william.launder@dowjones.com