HKEX given green light for Qianhai Mercantile Exchange
Offices in special economy zone already have electronic displays up-and-running, as well as a perfect replica of London Metal Exchange’s iconic trading pit, ‘The Ring’
Qianhai Authority has given its official green light to Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) to set up a commodities platform in the special economy zone – the commercial area in Shenzhen, also known as Qianhai New District.
Beijing is yet to give its final approval, and the local bourse still offered no time frame on when trading might be rolled out.
Several hundred metal traders from around the world attended a forum on Thursday on the planned commodities platform, which will be managed by an authority subsidiary, Qianhai Mercantile Exchange.
HKEX chief executive Charles Li Xiaojia led a tour of the newly set-up office, which already has electronic displays up-and-running to show London Metal Exchange (LME) commodity prices, video displays of trading on the LME floor, as well as a perfect replica of LME’s iconic trading pit, “The Ring” – the famous circle of seats on the LME floor which brokers occupy when trading metals.
LME was first founded in 1877 but traces its origins back to 1571 and the opening of the Royal Exchange in London. It has been a wholly owned subsidiary of HKEX since 2012.
