GH Financials Group (GHF), an independent clearing firm for exchange-traded derivatives, has appointed Mark Ibbotson as group chief executive officer, effective 7 October.
Based in the London headquarters, Ibbotson (pictured) will be leading the growth and expansion of the group, which currently has offices in Chicago and Hong Kong.
Peter Lovell has been appointed to the position of chief executive officer of GH Financials (Hong Kong) Ltd and will relocate to Hong Kong to drive the firm’s expansion in Asia.
John Foyle, chairman of the board of GHF, says: “We are delighted to welcome Mark Ibbotson to GHF. Mark is a leading figure in the derivatives industry and brings deep experience and seasoned leadership to GHF at this crucial stage of our expansion. His appointment demonstrates our ambition and strong commitment to growing our business globally.
“Peter’s move to Hong Kong marks our recognition that Asia, already a key driver of growth for the industry, will play a major role in GHF’s future development. Peter’s contributions to the firm over the past eleven years have resulted in significant growth and we believe he is the right person to drive new business in this key market.”
Ibbotson joins GHF after a 23-year career at LIFFE where he served most recently as co-chief executive of NYSE Liffe with a focus on exchange trading, clearing and regulation and as global head of clearing. His final major task at LIFFE was to oversee the transition of LIFFE’s clearing activities to ICE Clear Europe.
Lovell joined GHF in 2002, first as Global operations officer and more recently as chief executive officer. During his tenure, the number of exchange memberships, clients and clearing volumes all increased significantly. He was also instrumental in the implementation of new technology and the opening of a new subsidiary in Chicago.
GHF has provided clearing and settlement services on international derivatives exchanges to professional traders and institutions around the globe since 1993. In the last 12 months, GHF has cleared over 250 million contracts on 26 exchanges globally.
