MEFF
| MEFF (MEFF Sociedad Rectora del Mercado de Productos Derivados) | |
| |
| Founded | 1989 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Madrid, Spain |
| Key People | Javier Hernani Burzaco, CEO of BME |
| Products | Futures and options in equity indexes and single stocks |
| Profile | |
| Website | http://www.meff.com/?id=ing |
MEFF, known formally as MEFF Sociedad Rectora del Mercado de Productos Derivados S.A.U. is the Spanish derivatives market owned by Bolsas y Mercados Españoles or (BME). The derivatives exchange offers futures on the benchmark equity index IBEX 35 as well as single stock futures, dividend index futures, stock dividend futures, 10-year Notional Bond futures and electricity derivatives.[1]
The exchange operates three markets: MEFF for financial derivatives, MEFF Power for electricity clearing and MEFF Repo, for fixed income.
MEFF's exchange was separated from its clearinghouse in September 2013, to comply with new European regulations under the European Market Infrastructure Regulation, or EMIR. Preivously, it acted as both the market and clearing house for derivative products in Spain. Today, MEFF serves as the trading market platform and clearing is done by the separate entity, BME Clearing.[2]
The Futures Industry Association's annual volume survey ranked MEFF 29th globally by volume in 2018 with 43.5 million contracts, down 2.4 percent from a year earlier.[3][4]
History[edit]
The MEFF, initially known as Mercado Español de Futuros Financieros, was formed in 1989 by the Barcelona Stock Exchange, together with five savings banks and 10 commercial banks, as a platform to trade futures on Spanish government bonds. Spain’s derivatives sector was restructured in 1991, combining the MEFF in a single holding company, Mercado de Futuros Financieros, with the Madrid-based Mercado de Opciones Financiero Espanol (Mofex), which had been created to list stock futures and options.
The Barcelona operation, known as Meff Renta Fija, listed interest rate and currency products, while the Madrid-based Meff Renta Variable offered equity products. The partner exchanges were later folded into the new Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) in 2002, which combined into Spain's four stock exchanges in Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao and Valencia, together with the AIAF fixed-income exchange and Senaf, a venue for public debt trading. The BME listed 30 percent of its shares on the Madrid Stock Exchange on July 14, 2006. The Spanish Central Bank retained a 5.3 percent stake, while Santander and BBVA, the country's two largest banks, hold a combined 14.1 percent.
Meff launched a clearinghouse for Spain's OTC energy derivatives market, named MEFF Power, beginning in April 2011. MEFF Power is central counterparty aimed at reducing risk and increasing liquidity and efficiency in Spain's electricity derivatives market. The clearinghouse service was initially split between three entities: Iberdrola, Endesa, Galp, a Portugese firm, EON from Germany and EDF from France.[5][6]
Structure and Regulation[edit]
The enlarged MEFF unit includes: MEFF RF; MEFF RV, which is the counterparty for equity derivatives; MEFFCLEAR, the central counterparty for fixed income trading; the MEFF Services data processing business; AIAF and Senaf.[7]
MEFF currently has 95 members, down from 114 in 2009, and is diversifying its base with a push into international markets, opening telecommunications hubs in London and Chicago and securing an exemption from the CFTC to offer products in the U.S.[8] The MEFF is regulated by the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV).
Products[edit]
The slide in government bond futures listed on MEFF following the creation of the euro currency zone in 2000 was alleviated by the creation of one of Europe’s most liquid markets for single-stock futures, and equities have been the focus of product development and volume growth. Futures on the Ibex 35 benchmark index remain the single largest contract, rising 40 percent year-on-year to 6.5 million in the nine months to September 2007, with mini futures up 134 percent to 2.1 million over the same period. Options on the Ibex climbed 12.5 percent to 4 million. SSFs on 40 European stocks were launched in September 2007, adding to the 36 domestic contracts. The new contracts included 22 stocks listed on Euronext, 11 on Deutsche Borse, six on the Borsa Italiana and one on the OMX.[9]
As of January 27th, 2015, MEFF will list single stock dividend futures contracts with a larger contract size, following approval by the Spanish securities regulator, CNMV. The contract will be called “Single Stock Dividend Future Plus” and its notional size will be the dividends of 25,000 stocks.[10]
Key people[edit]
Fernando Centelles was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MEFF from 2006 until his death in 2013.
Annual Volumes[edit]
| Year | Total Annual Volume | Percent Change |
| 2018 | 443,502,213 | (-)2.4% |
| 2017 | 44,576,977 | (-)1.7% |
| 45,354,344 | (-)5.2% | |
| 2015 | 47,819,205 | 15.1% |
| 2014 | 56,304,885 | 2.9% |
| 2013 | 54,694,502 | (-)18.6% |
| 2012 | 67,176,529 | (-) 0.6% |
| 2011 | 67,572,131 | (-) 3.8% |
| 2010 | 70,224,176 | (-) 24.5% |
| 2009 | 93,057,252 | -- |
Resources[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ MEFF CCP - FAQs. MEFF.
- ↑ The Company. MEFF.
- ↑ FIA Report. Futures Industry Association.
- ↑ 2018 Annual Volume Survey. Futures Industry.org.
- ↑ Launch of MEFF Power, the clearing house for energy derivatives, in September. MEFF.
- ↑ Spain’s Meff To Float OTC Energy Futures. Institutional Investor.
- ↑ Company Structure. BME.
- ↑ The Art of Survival. FIA.
- ↑ Press Release. MEFF.
- ↑ MEFF launches new contract on stock dividend future. FTSE Global Markets.