NEW YORK, April 19, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Leaders of the derivatives exchanges and clearinghouse members of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) who have gathered this week for the annual International Options Market Association (IOMA) meeting, today issued a call for coordination of international regulatory reform that will foster additional transparency and more consequential risk management in off-exchange markets.
"The world's derivatives exchanges and clearinghouses proved their mettle during the financial crisis, but that was not necessarily the case in the largely unregulated off-exchange markets," said Ravi Narain, Chairman of IOMA and CEO of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) of India. "At this year's conference, we hope to continue to promote the benefits and safeguards of exchange trading and centralized clearing, and explore the extent to which they may be extended to the different over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives environment."
William J. Brodsky, Chairman of WFE and Chairman and CEO of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), underscored the significance of these meetings, "IOMA supports the efforts of the WFE and the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) to achieve internationally coordinated regulatory reform of off-exchange markets based on the benefits and safeguards of exchange trading and centralized clearing."
Bob Greifeld, Chief Executive Officer of the NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:NDAQ) will welcome the IOMA delegates on Wednesday, April 21. Greifeld will introduce Gary Gensler, Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the primary regulator for futures markets in the United States, who will present a keynote address. Gensler has been an advocate for financial regulatory reform in the U.S. Other panels will include a discussion led by Mr. Brodsky entitled, "Financial Services Reform," a conversation regarding, "Competing Client Constituencies," chaired by John Lothian of the John Lothian Newsletter, as well as a session entitled, "How Exchanges and Clearers Have Operated Through the Crisis," moderated by Steven Sears, Senior Editor at Barron's.
ABOUT IOMA:
IOMA was founded as an association of options markets and clearinghouses around the world. It includes most of the major exchanges trading options on equities, equity indexes, debt instruments, currencies and commodities. Since affiliating with WFE in 2002, IOMA has widened its scope to include futures and commodity trading.
ABOUT THE WFE:
The World Federation of Exchanges is the trade association for the operators of regulated financial exchanges. With 52 members from around the globe, the WFE develops and promotes standards in markets, supporting reform in the regulation of OTC derivatives markets, international cooperation and coordination among regulators. WFE stock exchanges are home to over 45,000 listed companies (as of December 2009).
At the end of 2009:
- The total market capitalization of listed companies was approximately USD 46.5 trillion, an increase of 43% as compared to 2008.
- Approximately USD 80.5 trillion in equities were traded on WFE stock exchanges, nearly a 30% decrease from USD 113 trillion recorded in 2008, and a decrease for the first time in seven years.
- More than 11 billion future and option contracts were traded on-exchange.
About NASDAQ OMX:
The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world's largest exchange company. It delivers trading, exchange technology and public company services across six continents, with approximately 3,700 listed companies. NASDAQ OMX offers multiple capital raising solutions to companies around the globe, including its U.S. listings market, NASDAQ OMX Nordic, NASDAQ OMX Baltic, NASDAQ OMX First North, and the U.S. 144A sector. The company offers trading across multiple asset classes including equities, derivatives, debt, commodities, structured products and exchange-traded funds. NASDAQ OMX technology supports the operations of over 70 exchanges, clearing organizations and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries. NASDAQ OMX Nordic and NASDAQ OMX Baltic are not legal entities but describe the common offering from NASDAQ OMX exchanges in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Iceland, Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. For more information about NASDAQ OMX, visit http://www.nasdaqomx.com. *Please follow NASDAQ OMX on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/NASDAQ-OMX/108167527653) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/nasdaqomx).