Leading Investment Banks And Deutsche Boerse Form Joint Venture For Real Time Bond Indices - Real Time Euro Bond Indices To Go Live In Fourth Quarter 2000/ Sterling Bond Indices To Commence 2001

Deutsche Börse has announced the launch of a new company that will provide investors with a unique source of index information on Euro and Sterling-denominated bonds. The company will offer real-time indices, based on real-time prices generated by seven leading global investment banks. Its first index – for Euro-denominated investment grade bonds, Government through Corporate bonds - will be launched before the end of the year, followed in early 2001 by a sterling index.

The company will be owned by a consortium including Deutsche Börse and seven global investment banks: ABN AMRO, Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and UBS Warburg. The company will offer real time indices, based on prices generated from the trading desks of the seven investment banks.

The indices will be the world’s first multi-contributor fixed income indices based on real-time data directly contributed by leading investment bank trading desks. The banks will provide trader prices while Deutsche Börse, as a neutral party, will consolidate them, calculate the indices and distribute the data via real time feeds.

”The indices will set a new benchmark for future index standards globally, offering a product superior to anything currently available to fixed income investors, either in Europe or the US,” said Christoph Lammersdorf, Executive Board member of Deutsche Börse. ”By providing investors with indices based on live prices, we will be offering investors greater market transparency and a solid, accurate basis for the establishment of performance benchmarks. The indices will also facilitate the creation of fixed income index-related derivative products, thereby enhancing the liquidity and depth of European capital markets.”

The indices will be provided by the joint venture company based in London. The company will be 20% owned by Deutsche Börse with the remaining 80% equally divided amongst the seven investment banks.