M E D I A R E L E A S E SFE Corporation (SFE) and New Zealand Exchange (NZX) to Develop Equity Derivatives in New Zealand. September 17, 2003 – Sydney, Australia: SFE is pleased to announce an agreement with the New Zealand Exchange (NZX) to develop an exchange traded market for New Zealand equity derivatives listed on the Sydney Futures Exchange and cleared through the SFE Clearing Corporation. The first tranche of products will be listed in March 2004 and will include equity index futures and futures option contracts, and individual equity options. The agreement provides scope for SFE and NZX to develop derivative products based on other underlying New Zealand securities in the future. As one of the ten largest financial futures and option exchanges in the world, SFE will provide technology infrastructure and considerable market operations expertise, whilst NZX, as the premier securities exchange in New Zealand, is ideally placed to provide product development expertise and distribution into the New Zealand equity market. NZX will also be responsible for the branding of products and promotion to customers. Mark Weldon, Chief Executive of NZX said, “We believe the deal with the SFE will provide NZX, and the local investment community, with the most cost effective access to derivative products. By entering into this relationship with the SFE, we are effectively avoiding the significant investment required to build our own market infrastructure and concurrently gain instant access to SFE’s global participant base. We would also expect, as has occurred in nearly all other markets with liquid futures and options, that liquidity in the underlying instruments will improve,” Peter Hiom, SFE General Manager – Exchange Business Development, added ‘the agreement with NZX is another example of how SFE can provide third parties, including other exchanges and clearing entities, with affordable access to world class trading, clearing and settlement infrastructure, global connectivity and expertise in product design”. The agreement with the NZX comes shortly after strong trading activity levels at the Sydney Futures Exchange. On Thursday, September 11, a record 651,178 futures and options contracts were traded, up from the previous record of 640,605 set on March 13, 2003. This was followed on Friday September 12, by record overnight trading volumes of 112,343 compared to the previous overnight record of 101,573 traded on March 14, 2003. 2 About SFE SFE Corporation (SFE) and its subsidiary company Sydney Futures Exchange provides exchange-traded and over-the-counter (OTC) services throughout the Asia Pacific region and in other major financial cities in the world. Fully electronic and with 24-hour trading capability, Sydney Futures Exchange offers trading products for investment and risk management and disseminates market data and information. SFE Clearing Corporation is the fully owned clearing and settlement arm of SFE, and provides central counterparty clearing, central securities depository and cash settlement services. Leveraging off its infrastructure and expertise, SFE also provides outsourcing services to industry bodies and other exchanges wishing to develop risk management products. www.sfe.com.au About New Zealand Exchange Limited (NZX) NZX operates New Zealand’s sole registered national stock exchange. Utilising its proprietary FASTER technology, NZX facilitates fully electronic trading, clearing and settlements across its three principle markets, the NZSX – Stock Market, the NZDX – Debt Market, and the soon to be launched NZAX – Alternative Market. In addition, NZX offers a comprehensive suite of data products, indices and funds, and is responsible for the ongoing surveillance and regulation of New Zealand’s capital markets. By providing a ready market for capital raising and business growth, NZX is at the forefront of business in New Zealand. At both the Board and management levels, NZX is committed to developing and ensuring the integrity and international competitiveness of New Zealand’s capital markets. NZX demutualised in October 2002 and became a publicly listed company on 4 June 2003. For more information, visit www.nzx.com.
SFE Price at posting:
0.0¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Not Held
