Nasdaq Liffe lists stocks for single-stock futures
CHICAGO, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Nasdaq Liffe Markets LLC (NQLX), an electronic derivatives alliance that will offer futures on individual stocks for the U.S. market, on Tuesday named a group of 50 high-profile stocks for its expected trading debut in the second quarter.
Nasdaq Liffe Markets, an electronic alliance between the Nasdaq stock market and the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE), said it plans to start trading in April, provided U.S. regulators finish the margin framework for single stock futures, a spokesman said.
The preliminary list includes some of the most active issues traded on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq markets such as U.S. technology bellwethers International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM - news), Microsoft Corp. (NasdaqNM:MSFT - news), conglomerate General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE - news) and home-improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. (NYSE:HD - news), the NQLX said.
Nasdaq Liffe also expects to offer broad-based and narrow-based indexes in the future after it is gets the green light from regulators.
``Pending regulatory approval, we are also looking forward to eventually bringing other innovative products like futures on the QQQs, an exchange-traded fund based on the Nasdaq 100 to our market,'' said Bob Fitzsimmons, president of NQLX in a press release.
Also vying for the U.S. business is OneChicago LLC, a joint venture of Chicago's three derivative exchanges, which issued last month its own list of 30 stocks for its trading launch.
On Jan. 21, OneChicago, an alliance of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (CME), the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), said it plans to roll out 50 to 75 security futures at its expected second-quarter launch.
Single-stock futures, which represent agreements to buy or sell shares of individual companies at a given price on a set future date, were banned in the United States for nearly 20 years.
Two years ago, the U.S. Congress lifted a 1982 prohibition on the single stock futures to allow U.S. futures exchanges to compete on an even footing with foreign rivals.
Single-stock futures would be jointly overseen by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodities Futures Trading Commission. |
