Entering your fifth decade is a landmark at which many people attempt to take stock of their life. So as we tick past 40 years since the Swedish equity derivatives market started trading (12 June 1985 to be precise) it feels like a good time to assess the importance of a well-functioning equity derivatives market to the economies of the Nordics and beyond. At the upcoming PostTrade 360° 2025 conference, Alessandro Romani, head of European equity derivatives products at Nasdaq, will take a deep look at the topic in the panel titled, “Hear it from the players: the derivatives clearing market panel”.
Have you signed up yet to be in Stockholm for PostTrade 360° 2025 on 3–4 September? It’s free for securities operations pros, both trading and investor sides! (Vendor firm representatives need a sponsorship agreement.) The powerful event website lets you register, see all other delegates, schedule sessions and meetings, and message. Find all related articles, including loads of teaser interviews, here.
Romani is particularly well placed to discuss this topic, having played a key role in the development of derivatives trading since joining the capital markets platform and service provider in 2001.
“There has been a lot of talk recently about the lack of growth in equity derivatives trading in Europe compared to what we have seen in other regions,” he says. “In our discussion we will address some of the fundamental issues behind this lack of growth.”
A particularly interesting aspect of this discussion will be how it connects some of these issues to the broader discussion that is taking place in Europe around the Savings and Investment Union (SIU) agenda.
Get creative
Romani will also consider the role of product innovation in boosting trading activity – particularly relevant as Europe is leading the way in terms of the futurisation of equity swaps following the introduction of total return index futures and Nasdaq’s custom basket futures.
“The futurisation of swaps opens up many opportunities,” says Romani. “The OTC market for equity-linked swaps and forwards is huge – in excess of US$4 trillion. However, it is very much challenged by capital requirements, so sell-side and buy-side firms are trying to find alternative solutions that are more capital efficient, less costly and also addressing the inherent risks in bilateral trading.”
This discussion will therefore give participants food for thought in terms of how they think about their product portfolios. “We want everyone in the room to go back to their organisation with different thoughts about how to approach product development,” he adds.
