U.S. Futures Exchange To License Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex Index For U.S. Futures Listing
Exclusive Agreement With BSE Provides For U.S. Dollar-Denominated Futures Contract To Begin Trading February 22, 2008
MUMBAI, India (November 12, 2007) – U.S. Futures Exchange (USFE) announced today that it will exclusively license Bombay Stock Exchange’s (BSE) benchmark SENSEX Index for U.S. dollar-denominated futures trading beginning February 22, 2008. USFE’s SENSEX contract will allow eligible U.S. investors to directly participate in India’s equity markets for the first time, without requiring American Depository Receipt (ADR) authorization.
The SENSEX Index is composed of 30 major Indian stocks and regarded as the country’s premier stock market index. The SENSEX’s value has risen more than 600 percent since its low in May 2003, reflecting significant growth in the Indian economy. BSE currently offers rupee-denominated SENSEX futures to qualified Indian market participants.
“Exposure to emerging markets, particularly India, is now essential for institutional portfolio management and retail investors alike,” said Kevin Davis, Chairman, USFE. “This agreement will provide the opportunity for US investors to gain exposure to India’s unprecedented economic growth, expansion and investment performance. We are excited about this opportunity and pleased that the Bombay Stock Exchange has chosen to expand the distribution and availability of its SENSEX Index exclusively with USFE.”
“SENSEX has been and continues to be the flagship index of the Indian capital market. Indeed, for millions of investors in India and overseas, it is synonymous with the Indian equity market and is viewed globally as a barometer of the performance of the economy,” said Rajnikant Patel, Managing Director & CEO of BSE.
“The launch of a futures contract based on the SENSEX will facilitate overseas investors in taking exposure to the Indian equities. I am confident the listing of the dollar denominated SENSEX contract on USFE will elicit a very positive response from the international investing community,” Mr. Patel added.
USFE’s U.S. dollar-denominated SENSEX futures contract will trade 23 hours per day and settle monthly to the corresponding value of BSE’s futures contract. The contract will have a notional value of 40,000 and a tick size of $5. Expected market participants include hedge funds and institutions, international mutual funds, and individuals seeking investments in Indian markets.
“The SENSEX futures product is an ideal fit for USFE’s global distribution model and commitment to innovation,” said Satish Nandapurkar, CEO of USFE. “USFE’s listing of the SENSEX Index will provide U.S. market participants with direct access to pure Indian equities exposure through existing futures accounts.”
ADDENDUM – INDIAN ECONOMY FACTS
· The SENSEX’s value has risen more than 600 percent since its low in May 2003 (SENSEX data via Bloomberg).
· The SENSEX’s value has risen about 39 percent since May 2007 and closed above 20,000 for the first time on Oct. 29 (Bloomberg, Oct. 29, 2007).
· According to Indian Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram, India’s economy will expand by more than 9 percent the fiscal year ending March 31, 2008, and has grown an average 8.6 percent since 2004 (Bloomberg, Nov. 5, 2007).
· The rupee is the best performer among Asia’s ten most actively traded currencies this year, gaining 12.7 percent (Bloomberg, Nov. 5, 2007).
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About Bombay Stock Exchange (www.bseindia.com)
Established in 1875 BSE is the oldest stock exchange in Asia.
Earlier an Association of Persons (AOP), the Exchange is now a corporatised and demutualised entity. BSE reaches to around 450 cities and towns of India and has more than 4,800 listed companies on the board, with over 7,500 scrips being traded. The companies listed on BSE command a total market capitalization of 1.4 trillion USD. The Exchange offers trading in the equity (cash and derivatives) and debt (corporate and government securities) segments.
About U.S. Futures Exchange
Chicago-based U.S. Futures Exchange offers specialized products to meet the unique market demands of retail, hedge fund and institutional customers in a fully regulated, centrally cleared futures and options exchange. U.S. Futures Exchange was formed in 2006 following Man Group’s investment in the former Eurex US. For further information, visit www.usfe.com.
For more information:
Kalyan S. Bose
Bombay Stock Exchange Ltd.
+91 22 2272 2938
corporate.affairs@bseindia.com
Sarah Tegel
U.S. Futures Exchange
312-356-3940
stegel@usfe.com
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