The international derivatives market Eurex Exchange will introduce currency derivatives (FX contracts) as exchange-listed products as of 7 October.
Eurex Exchange will initially offer futures and options on the following currency pairs: EUR/USD, EUR/GBP, EUR/CHF, GBP/USD, GBP/CHF and USD/CHF. The majority of over-the-counter, daily FX derivatives trading takes place in these currency pairs.
“With this step, we again contribute to increasing the transparency and safety of financial markets. The large majority of FX derivatives are currently traded off-exchange. With our listed contracts we are offering an alternative in which we bring the advantages of exchange trading, including clearing, to a market that has so far been organised predominantly bilaterally,” says Peter Reitz, member of the Eurex executive board. “We have tailored our offering to current market practices and want to provide efficient and effective access to a regulated and safe market.”
Eurex Exchange offers physical settlement of contracts for these products, i.e. delivery of the respective currencies via the international currency settlement system Continuous Linked Settlement, which is established in the FX market. The FX futures will be tradable from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm CET, the FX options from 8:00 am to 7:30 pm CET.
For this market introduction, Eurex Exchange is offering long-term incentive programmes with revenue sharing in order to provide sufficient order book liquidity. Special programmes for the futures and options are available for market makers.
