HKEX announces plans for additional RMB currency futures; includes Euro, Aussie

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) plans to introduce additional Renminbi (RMB) currency futures in the second quarter of this year, subject to regulatory approval.

LeapRate reported on HKEX’s 2015 review where RMB currency futures were cited as a key driver of growth in the FX segment while achieving record volumes for 2015. It looks like 2016 is picking up where last year left off.

New Currency Futures to be Introduced by HKEX:

  • Cash-settled Euro-RMB, Japanese yen-RMB and Australian dollar-RMB futures to give market participants more tools for hedging their RMB risk.
  • US dollar-denominated cash-settled RMB-US dollar futures to complement the existing physically-delivered US dollar-RMB futures.  The existing futures had record high open interest of 32,009 contracts on 5 February this year, and their average daily volume in the first quarter of the year was 3,128 contracts, more than triple from the same period last year.

“Cash-settled RMB currency futures are part of our plan to expand our product portfolio across asset classes,” said Romnesh Lamba, HKEX’s Co-Head of Market Development.  “These new products help extend and deepen our value proposition as RMB is used more widely around the world.”

“We have been pleased by the big surge in our RMB currency futures volume,” said Li Gang, HKEX’s Co-head of Market Development.  “Our new futures will give the market more tools for trading and risk management.”

You can find a summary of the contract specifications for the new cash-settled RMB currency futures by clicking here.

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