Press

Eurex, the German-Swiss derivatives market, will launch a number of new money-market products in September. Eurex is basing the products on the Euribor, the interest rate newly developed for the Euro area. Eurex will start by introducing futures on the One- and Three-Month Euribor on September 18, 1998. The January 1999 contract will be the first contract tradable in these products. This will be followed by options on the Three-Month Euribor future on September 22, beginning with the March 1999 contract. To give participants a high degree of flexibility, Eurex will also introduce a future on the Three-Month Euro-Libor on September 18, 1998, because this reference interest rate will still play an important role in the money market, at least for the time being. The new euro products will replace One-and Three-Month Euromark futures, as well as the option on the Three-Month Euromark future.

Eurex is waiving the transaction fees for the new products until March 1999. The fees for the Three-Month Euribor future can be waived until December 1999 for participants who have traded at least 150,000 contracts in Three-Month Money Market futures during the first six months of the fee waiver and rank among the ten highest-volume members in the combined ranking. Eurex is waiving the fees to further enhance the attractiveness of the products. The fee waiver until March 1999 will also be valid for the Three-Month Euro-Libor as well as the existing money-market products, the One-Month and Three Month Euromark future as well as the options on the Three-Month Euromark future.

Eurex is convinced that the new Euribor contracts will be a success: The Euribor will be regarded in trading as an important reference interest rate for money-market transactions in euros, the Exchange said. Twelve institutions had expressed their interest in supporting trading in Euribor products as market makers even before the official invitations to apply. With the fee waiver and the lower costs of an electronic trading system, Eurex will be able to offer these products at costs that have no competition.