Euronext.Liffe acquires CScreen in bid to automate equity derivatives

CScreen was established by Sweden's Cinnober in 2001 to provide electronic dealing services for inter-dealer brokers and other financial intermediaries. Euronext.Liffe says the acquisition will form the basis for a new wholesale STP service, by linking pre-trade price discovery via IOIs posted via CScreen to post-trade booking and administration.

Hugh Freedberg, chief executive of Euronext.liffe says: "This service will offer customers a comprehensive means of carrying out their wholesale business – something which has never been available in either the OTC or listed markets before. By offering straight-through processing and a competitive fee structure the service will make trading easier and help reduce costs and operational risk."

Under the terms of the agreement, Cinnober will deliver all the components for the new service - including facilities for 'on-exchange' administration and clearing or 'off-exchange' post-trade matching - as well as continue to provide technical development for CScreen.

Nils-Robert Persson, chairman of Cinnober, says: "CScreen has developed a strong community of users since it was launched and is gaining an increasing foothold in the marketplace. When CScreen is linked to automated post-trade matching, administration and clearing services the whole offer is both innovative and extremely compelling."

The extended service will cover a broad range of European blue-chip stocks and indices, including Belgian, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Swiss and UK products.

The OTC market is several times the size of the exchange-traded market and is growing strongly. The new service is designed to capture an increasing amount of this off-exchange business.

Euronext.liffe’s provision of the service is subject to final FSA regulatory approval. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.