TSX Group Inc. and International Securities Exchange Holdings, Inc. (ISE) today announced the completion of a shareholders agreement for CDEX Inc. (CDEX), which will operate DEX, a new derivatives exchange scheduled to begin operation in March 2009. CDEX will initially be owned 52% by TSX Group and 48% by ISE Ventures LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of ISE, and will list and trade options, futures and options on futures on a range of Canadian securities. The launch of DEX will benefit the Canadian marketplace by bringing innovative derivative products and expanding the available trading alternatives.
Completion of the shareholders agreement is a significant milestone because it triggers funding by TSX and ISE of the monies needed to establish DEX and execute its initial business plan. The cost of setting up DEX is expected to be approximately $26 million Canadian and will be split between TSX and ISE according to their share ownership in the new venture.
CDEX has been incorporated under the Canada Business Corporations Act and will initially have a seven member Board of Directors, comprised of four TSX and three ISE representatives.
About TSX Group Inc. (TSX-X)
TSX Group operates Canada's two national stock exchanges, Toronto Stock
Exchange serving the senior equity market and TSX Venture Exchange serving
the public venture equity market, Natural Gas Exchange (NGX), a leading North
American exchange for the trading and clearing of natural gas and electricity
contracts and Shorcan Brokers Limited, the country's first fixed income interdealer
broker. TSX Group also owns The Equicom Group Inc., a leading
provider of investor relations and related corporate communication services in
Canada. TSX Group is headquartered in Toronto and maintains offices in
Montreal, Winnipeg, Calgary and Vancouver.
About ISE (NYSE:ISE)
International Securities Exchange Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ISE), through its
subsidiaries, operates a family of innovative securities markets. Founded on the
principle that technology and competition create better, more efficient markets for
investors, ISE consists of an options exchange, a stock exchange, an alternative
markets platform and a market data business. ISE continually enhances its
trading systems and develops new products to provide investors with the best
marketplace and investment tools to trade smarter.
For more information about ISE, visit www.ise.com.
