ICE Futures Europe has announced that this Monday, October 1, 2012, the new futures and options contracts (“the Swap Futures Contracts”) based on swaps will be launched. The specific products are as follows:
- 285 oil swap futures;
- 24 options on oil swap futures;
- 46 NGL swap futures;
- 14 freight swap futures;
- 1 liquefied natural gas swap future; and
- 1 iron ore swap future.
Lofchie Comment: In his recent speech criticizing the CFTC’s Dodd-Frank rulemaking, CFTC Commissioner O’Malia specifically pointed to the ICE’s making available for trading “futures” as substitutes for “swaps” as an example of the arbitrary burdens that the CFTC imposed on swaps, with the result that market participants are forced to shift to futures contracts that are similar to swaps, but may not serve their needs as well.
View notice in full here (links externally to ICE website).
See also: Swap Futures Contract Terms separated into General Contract Terms and Specific Standard Terms as appropriate – Attachment 1, Attachment 2, Attachment 3, Attachment 4, Attachment 5, Attachment 6 and Attachment 7.