The year 2008 was another record-breaking year on the derivatives market. The trading volume in all derivatives was 12.6 million instruments, up by 27% year on year (9.9 million instruments in 2007). The number of open positions in all derivative instruments was 89 thousand instruments at the end of the year.
WIG20 index contracts were the most popular instrument. Their volume of trading was over 11.7 million contracts in 2008. The highest monthly volume was 1.4 million contracts in October 2008. The average daily volume of trading was 46.8 thousand contracts. The average monthly volume of trading was almost 1 million contracts. The DLR (the value of trading in WIG20 futures contracts to the value of trading in stocks comprised by the WIG20 index in 2008) was 240% in 2008.
The volume of trading in single-stock futures contracts grew sharply in 2008. The annual volume was 331.6 thousand contracts, almost three times more than in 2007 (114 thousand contracts in 2007). The highest monthly volume of trading was 54.4 thousand contracts in October 2008. The average monthly volume of trading was 24.6 thousand contracts.
The year 2008 brought a break-through in trading in currency futures contracts. The annual volume of trading was 132.6 thousand contracts, almost 22 times more than in 2007 (the volume was 6.1 thousand contracts in 2007). The highest monthly volume of trading was 32 thousand contracts in October 2008. The average monthly volume of trading was 11.0 thousand contracts.
The volume of trading in WIG20 options was 326.6 thousand options in 2008 (the volume of trading in WIG20 options was modestly higher at 399.1 thousand options in 2007).
The derivatives market milestones in 2008 included:
- Trading in derivative instruments was extended by 30 minutes as of 1 September 2008. Trading sessions open at 8:30 (previously 9:00) and close at 16:30;
- Swiss franc (CHF) and British pound (GBP) exchange rate futures contracts were introduced to exchange trading on 30 September 2008. Their specification is the same as that of already listed currency futures contracts;
- The FOW Derivatives World CEE conference devoted to the CEE derivative instruments market was co-organised by the WSE and held for the first time in Warsaw on 19 November 2008;
- The second CEE Derivatives Forum 2008, the CEE’s largest conference on the derivative and structured instruments markets, was held in the WSE head office on 20-21 November 2008 with the participation of Polish and international speakers and audience.
The WSE continued to build the structured products market in 2008. At the end of 2008, the WSE listed 46 structured products including 36 certificates and 10 notes (compared to 9 certificates and 3 notes at the end of 2007). The value of trading was PLN 156 million, over 6 times more than in 2007 (PLN 25 million). There were 6 issuers of structured products.
The volume of trading in structured products was 1.18 million products, almost 5.5 times more than in 2007. The number of transactions was 8.3 thousand transactions, almost 10 times more than in 2007.
34 new structured products, including 7 notes and 27 certificates, were listed on the WSE in 2008. The range of listed structured certificates was extended from ordinary delta one certificates to guaranteed, express, bonus, and short certificates providing returns against falling prices of the underlying instrument. New underlying instruments were added as the WSE introduced structured products linked with the WIG20 index, CEE indices, Nasdaq and Nikkei 225, as well as many commodities including sugar, cocoa, coffee, silver, precious metals, etc.
The group of three active issuers (Deutsche Bank London, ERSTE Bank, Raiffeisen Centrobank) was joined by new issuers in 2008: Barclays Bank, BNP Paribas, UniCredit.
The highest value of trading was in gold certificates “RCGLDAOPEN” (PLN 59.15 million), BELEX 15 index certificates “UCBLXAOPEN” (PLN 17.32 million), Brent Crude oil certificates “RCCRUAOPEN” (PLN 11.92 million), and WIG20 index certificates “UCW20AOPEN” (PLN 11.78 million).
The WSE in co-operation with brokerage house and the FERK foundation organised a series of 33 training sessions on futures contracts and options in 2008. Training was offered in many Polish cities by WSE and brokerage house experts. The training introduced almost 4 thousand participants to the theory and practice of investment in listed derivative instruments. Training will continue to be offered in 2009; for more information see www.ferk.pl.
A structured products road show was organised in 2008 in collaboration between the FERK foundation, Raiffeisen Centrobank and the WSE. Meetings in several Polish cities (Warsaw, Kraków, Katowice, Gda?sk, Wroc?aw, Pozna?) brought together over 700 participants.
