NASDAQ OMX chooses Fortis subsidiary EMCF for clearing services

The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. today announced that it has selected the European Multilateral Clearing Facility (EMCF), a wholly-owned Fortis subsidiary, to deliver clearing services for the NASDAQ OMX Pan-European Market, said Fortis in a statement.rn rn”Our relationship with EMCF is an important step in our plan to leverage the growth opportunities before us in this post-MiFID environment. It will enable us to offer not only faster and better executions, but a highly reliable, seamless post-trade experience,” commented Chris Concannon, Executive Vice President of Transactions Services, NASDAQ OMX.rn rnJan Booij, Managing Director of EMCF said: “Since the European Multilateral Clearing Facility was launched in 2007, we have shown a strong determination to substantially grow the clearing businesses. The collaboration with the NASDAQ OMX Group is further evidence of our winning strategy, which is based on the simple principles of reliability, price competition and quality of service. Servicing the NASDAQ OMX Pan-European Market will bring the benefits of netted settlements and margins based on netted positions to our customers active on multiple trading venues.”rn rnSettlement will be handled domestically on the Pan-European Market, i.e. all trades will settle in the underlying domestic settlement system and accordingly will have settlement fungibility with trades on the primary market.rn rnThe NASDAQ OMX Pan-European Market will enable best execution in high volume securities trading in a cross-border, multi-market environment. The market, which will be the first platform to connect European liquidity pools with Pan-European routing, is scheduled to open in September 2008. At launch it will trade approximately 300 of the most actively traded European blue chip shares. The NASDAQ OMX trading platform is recognised as the fastest in the industry with peak trading speeds of 250 microseconds. The launch of the NASDAQ OMX Pan-European Market is subject to FSA approval.rn rnFortis is an international financial services provider engaged in banking and insurance. We offer our personal, business and institutional customers a comprehensive package of products and services through our own channels, in collaboration with intermediaries and through other distribution partners. With a market capitalisation of EUR 38.5 billion (30/04/2008), Fortis ranks among the 20 largest financial institutions in Europe. Our sound solvency position, our presence in over 50 countries and our dedicated, professional workforce of 65,000 enable us to combine global strength with local flexibility and provide our clients with optimum support. More information is available at www.fortis.com.rn rnEMCF, a wholly-owned Fortis subsidiary, is an independent central counterparty clearing house and offers central counterparty services for equity trading on exchanges and multilateral trading facilities. EMCF is regulated by the AFM and the Dutch Central Bank.rn rnThe NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world’s largest exchange company. It delivers trading, exchange technology and public company services across six continents, and with over 3,900 companies, it is number one in worldwide listings among major markets. NASDAQ OMX offers multiple capital raising solutions to companies around the globe, including its U.S. listings market; the OMX Nordic Exchange, including First North; and the 144A PORTAL Market. The company offers trading across multiple asset classes including equities, derivatives, debt, commodities, structured products and ETFs. NASDAQ OMX technology supports the operations of over 60 exchanges, clearing organizations and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries. OMX Nordic Exchange is not a legal entity but describes the common offering from Nasdaq OMX exchanges in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Iceland, Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. For more information about NASDAQ OMX, visit www.nasdaqomx.com.rn