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I went along to the International Derivatives Expo in London this week. The show, put on by the US Futures Industry Association and the UK’s Futures and Options Association, is always well attended and I thought it would be good to know what’s going on – after all, if the regulators have their way it seems everything will either be traded on an exchange or have some kind of clearing house involved in the post-trade environment at least.
I also needed a new USB memory stick. I trawled the exhibitors’ stands to find one but, as with other shows this year, the standard of freebies given to people who have no need of them has slipped. I did get a cuddly panda from Newedge that I took to lunch with an old mucker who works for the firm.
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As well as Newedge, which has a strong niche in FX, other players from the futures world were at the show, including naturally, the CME. I bumped into chief executive Craig Donohue, who looked tanned, relaxed and fit.