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Aquis Exchange, the proposed pan-European equities trading exchange, has entered into agreements with EMCF, LCH.Clearnet and SIX x-clear for them to provide it with central counterparty (CCP) services.
Aquis Exchange is set to introduce subscription pricing for European stock trading when it launches. It is currently awaiting approval from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority. These CCP agreements mean that Aquis Exchange will be able to offer its Members very high quality counterparty risk protection, settlement netting facilities and post-trade anonymity. EMCF, LCH.Clearnet and SIX x-clear together account for the majority of the current European equities clearing market. All these agreements are subject to regulatory approval.
Commenting on the agreements, Aquis Exchange CEO Alasdair Haynes said: “We are strong advocates of the horizontal model and open access. It has always been our plan for Aquis Exchange to link to a number of CCPs so Members have choice of where to clear. These agreements mean that we will be able to offer them that choice, and interoperability, from the very beginning, which is great news.”
Jan Booij, CEO of EMCF said: “We are delighted to be appointed as a clearer for Aquis Exchange. As the first pan-European CCP, we initiated safe and efficient European clearing and we are delighted to extend this further with Aquis Exchange.”
Alberto Pravettoni, CEO, Repo and Exchanges businesses at LCH.Clearnet, said: “We are delighted to have been selected by Aquis Exchange to provide clearing services. This development underscores our ability to respond quickly to market needs and our commitment to an open, horizontal clearing model. We look forward to working with Aquis to help ensure that participants can benefit from the protection of centralised risk management and our wealth of clearing expertise.”
Tomas Kindler, Head of Clearing Services, SIX Securities Services said: Aquis Exchange is an exciting example of market innovation and we are delighted to expand our interoperable market coverage in response. SIX x-clear enables clients to benefit from leading centralized risk management with the efficiencies of consolidated clearing and settlement. We look forward to working with Aquis Exchange as we continue to increase our venue and product coverage, meeting market demands.
