SecFinex, the Nyse Euronext owned browser-based, online trading platform allowing securities finance professionals to trade electronically in the securities lending market, today announced that BNP Paribas Securities Services will become a General Clearing Member (GCM) of its platform.
SecFinex was the first company to introduce centrally cleared services in the Securities Borrowing & Lending (SBL) industry in 2009 using LCH.Clearnet as the central clearer covering equity markets in Belgium, France, The Netherlands and Portugal. The service has since been extended to cover Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland, with SIX x-clear as the central clearer, with coverage of the UK market planned for 2011.
The expansion of the SecFinex central counterparty ("CCP") service to include BNP Securities Services as a GCM will allow a wider range of firms to participate in securities lending transactions without the need for major infrastructural build. Participants will also benefit from a single entry portal to multiple supply and distribution points without the need for multiple participation agreements, reduction of capital allocation for counterparty credit risk, centralized daily mark to market, real time risk management and margining and full straight-through-processing.
Roland Bellegarde, Chairman of SecFinex Board, and Group Executive Vice President and Head of European Execution, NYSE Euronext said: "Increased regulatory focus, attention to capital usage and cost as well as Basel III implications are some of the drivers that are starting to encourage a fundamental shift in the way securities lending develops.
Today's exciting announcement with BNP Paribas Securities Services, a leading provider of GCM services, demonstrates SecFinex's continuous commitment to providing participants with access to a centrally cleared market place for securities lending and to be at the forefront of market innovation."
Alain Pochet, Head of clearing and custody services BNP Paribas Securities Services: "We are pleased to announce the addition of SecFinex to our service offering. By using their existing connections, our clients can now extend their use of our GCM services to trade one on Se SecFinex and participate in the online global marketplace for securities lending."