Eurex Release 4.0 Successfully Launched - Clearing GUI Introduced - New Functionality For

On Monday, June 26, 2000, the derivatives market Eurex successfully introduced a new software version of the Eurex electronic trading system. The fourth generation of Eurex software was thus launched right on time on the target date. Following final simulations with the participants over the past few weeks, trading via the newly installed software was active on Monday for the first time. About 440 participants from 16 countries implemented the introduction of the new software together with Eurex, as the derivatives market announced in Frankfurt on Tuesday. Release 4.0 is also the basis for the starting release of the joint venture between the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) and Eurex. The joint venture will make an electronic trading platform available to the U.S. derivatives exchange CBOT as of this summer. The simulation process will get under way there, as announced, on July 17, 2000.

The main innovation with Release 4.0 is the introduction of a graphical user interface (GUI) for core clearing functions. The Clearing GUI complements the Trading GUI that was launched with Release 3.0. Moreover, in addition to further enhanced system performance, new functionalities have been introduced in clearing, as well as for trading in money-market products. In the future, for example, trade administration and position management, give-up/take-up functionalities, settlement functions as well as data management and user administration functions will be executable via the new graphical interface. The expansion of the give up/take-up functionality to include OTC block trades gives participants greater flexibility in the settlement of these transactions. OTC block trades enable standardized processing, clearing and settlement of OTC transactions through the Eurex clearinghouse, thus reducing the risk.

To further enhance the trading of money-market products, Eurex is making available the integration of calendar spreads between all pairs of successive contract dates in the trading of Eurex money-market futures. Eurex is thus making a state-of-the-art solution available for trading in the Euribor products.

The handling of option exercises, the batch-processing of transactions and the set-up of user profiles have also been further enhanced and simplified. The derivatives market has also expanded the system performance to ensure maximum efficiency for continuing above-average increases in volume.