Castalia Springs concludes first FFA trade at NOS via Macquarie Bank

The trade was concluded on the IMAREX screen by Cayman Islands registered specialist shipping fund Castalia Springs via Macquarie Bank, a leading bank in the commodity sector.

"This transaction marks a milestone in the development of the dry bulk freight futures market because, for the very first time, FFA contracts can now be traded directly on the International Maritime Exchange and cleared via a bank," says Philippe van Abeele, head of Castalia Fund Management UK Ltd. "It’s just the kind of facility we have been wishing for," he adds.

In January, NOS and IMAREX announced that Macquarie Bank and MAN Financial had joined as General Clearers, with more to come in the coming months. "Several other leading banks are now being set up with this facility and we expect to see a lot more business this way from now on," says Morten Erichsen, CEO of NOS Clearing in Oslo.

Until now, all clearing at NOS have been with principals as direct clearing members. The expanded links via general clearing member opens up the freight derivatives market to a broader trading audience, as banks are able to offer direct market access to their customers via the banks` own credit lines at NOS.

"Simply put, clearing simplifies credit concerns for existing market participants it will become the focal entry point for new sources of capital to the freight derivatives market," says Mark Fitzpatrick, Head of Derivatives Clearing at Macquarie Bank in London.

Clearing is the fastest growing sector of the dry bulk freight futures and options market, now estimated to be worth in excess of US$25 billion per year.

For more information, please contact:

• Philippe van Abeele, Castalia Fund Management UK Ltd Tel: +44 207 229 1808
• Mark Fitzpatrick, Macquarie Bank +44 20 7065 2142
• Morten Erichsen, NOS tel: +47 2325 9300