World's Largest Exchange Looks to India

By Jennifer Yousfi
Managing Editor

CME Group Inc. (CME), owner of the world's largest and most diverse exchange, has turned its eye to India, according to Chief Executive Officer Craig S. Donohue.

Speaking last week at the Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) Financial Services CEO Conference in Manhattan, Donohue said, "We are very much looking at [India]." He also noted that CME Group has already initiated discussions with regulators and exchanges in India.

India is home to a number of exchanges including the National Stock Exchange of India Limitied (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange Limited (BSE).  While the NSE is fairly new -  first incorporating in 1992 - the BSE is the oldest stock exchange in Asia, dating back to 1875 when it was first established as The Native Share & Stock Brokers Association.

An Indian exchange would be a nice addition to the globally-focused CME Group, which was formed in July 2007 by the merger of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. and CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) Holdings Inc. 

The combined volume of CME Group and CBOT in 2006 exceeded 2.2 billion contracts, worth more than $1,000 trillion [$1 quadrillion].

According to the company's website, CME Group serves the risk-management needs of customers around the globe. As an international marketplace, CME Group brings buyers and sellers together on the CME Globex electronic trading platform and on its trading floors.

CME Group offers the widest range of benchmark products available across all major asset classes, including futures and options based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, agricultural commodities and alternative investment products such as weather and real estate.

And India is not the only country on CME Group's radar. The Financial Times reported that CME Group also is looking at Latin America and Asia. CME Group was also recently in talks with Kuala Lumpur-based Bursa Malaysia, but a recent statement confirmed that no deal had been reached.

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