Eurex onboards Goldman Sachs to support listed FX futures
Europe’s leading derivatives exchange, Eurex, has welcomed Goldman Sachs as a new member in its listed FX Futures business. Goldman Sachs, a major player in the global FX markets, has joined Eurex to support various market participants looking to shift their FX activities to this platform.
Goldman Sachs will participate in Eurex’s FX business as both a clearing member and liquidity provider, offering liquidity for off-book transactions. The move means that the bank’s clients can trade FX on Eurex Exchange, while its clearing unit now provides support for classic FX derivatives, as well as rolling spot futures which are now live on the exchange.
This approach allows market participants to maintain bilateral trading relationships to access OTC liquidity while benefiting from fully cleared FX contracts. It also enables them to transform OTC trades into exchange-traded and centrally cleared contracts, reducing uncleared exposure and optimizing capital allocation.
Jens Quiram, Global Head of FIC Derivatives & Repo Sales at Eurex said: “We are delighted to see Goldman Sachs offering their global client base access to our listed FX derivatives suite. Goldman Sachs’ engagement both as clearing member and liquidity provider will enable even more clients to benefit from listed FX liquidity at Eurex. This is another major milestone on our way to expand Europe’s leading listed FX liquidity hub.”
Joseph Nehorai, Global Co-Head of Futures at Goldman Sachs added: “With block trades and EFPs, we can offer access to OTC liquidity while transacting in a listed instrument. Increasing funding and capital costs evolving in FX markets are leading to a growing appetite to move towards listed FX derivatives. This enables the buy-side community to enjoy the advantages of OTC trading and centrally cleared derivatives.”
The Eurex FX offering of classic FX futures and options, in combination with the rolling spot futures, allows traders to manage their FX exposures with listed products.
The pan-European exchange has made efforts over the past year to expand its FX trading business, most recently signing major banks to support their FX futures, from clearing to trading.
Eurex’s currency trading desk currently offers various FX derivatives products, including FX futures available in 19 currency pairs, all with quotation and tick sizes in-line with existing OTC FX standards. A liquidity scheme caters for tight pricing and competitive liquidity, it says.
However, London remains the pre-eminent in FX and OTC derivatives, which are used by investors to hedge their portfolios, but market participants are concerned that the Brexit deal will cause disruption in the cross-border derivatives market.
Recently, Deutsche Börse’s derivatives-focused exchange launched a new program to incentivize clients running active accounts in the EU. Eurex’s profit sharing scheme continues to win clearing business from rivals in the UK even as the battle for euro-clearing continues. Since Britain fully left the EU in December, clearing euro derivatives has become a Brexit battle as Brussels seeks to build up the bloc’s own capital market and end reliance on London.
