Asiaclear, the clearance and settlement system that will supposedly revolutionize the region's bond markets, is an idea that refuses to die. It has been debated at Asian Development Bank (ADB) meetings since the early 1990s and cropped up again at last month's gathering in Fukuoka.
However, there have been new developments. HongkongBank has registered Asiaclear as a trademark, according to Tomoo Hayakawa, a former treasurer of the Asian Development Bank, now president of the Asia Finance and Investment Corp.
Will this mean a large, well-capitalized bank will do for Asiaclear what JP Morgan did for Euroclear in 1968? Not exactly. Hayakawa - who sometimes credits himself with founding Asiaclear - was not happy with HongkongBank. He accused HSBC chairman, Sir William Purves, of registering the trademark "quietly and secretly" in November 1992.
Hayakawa says Purves heard about Asiaclear after lunching with him - and nearly jumped out of his chair with excitement. Purves then registered the name with the intellectual property department in Hong Kong. This, Hayakawa adds, was never his intention; the name was supposed to be "commonly held" for all of Asia and not registered by one bank.