STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Sept. 12, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- OMX, a world leading provider of marketplace solutions and services for the financial and energy markets, and NOS ASA, the Norwegian Futures and Options Clearing House and technology provider, have entered into a strategic technology partnership to create a more efficient Nordic Baltic market for clearing and settlement of derivatives by NOS joining the other Nordic securities markets on a common technology platform and to build a next generation clearing system for the global securities industry.
OMX and NOS share the vision of a consolidated Nordic Baltic derivatives clearing platform. The long term realization of this vision also includes plans to start joint development of a next generation clearing system.
As a first step NOS will replace the current financial clearing system, FOCS, with OMX's SECUR(TM) clearing system by 2006. NOS will also outsource the operation of the new platform to OMX for a period of ten years.
Together, OMX and NOS will evaluate how to set up a development cooperation and will explore if Qepta(R), the commodity clearing system developed and used by NOS today, can be further developed to a next generation derivatives clearing platform. For this purpose OMX will acquire a license for Qepta(R).
"The agreement with OMX will secure NOS' long term role as provider of clearing services to the Norwegian market as well as help us to further strengthen our business by improving our clearing solutions through new products and functionality. The cooperation gives NOS a long term strategic role in the future development of the integrated Nordic Baltic market. We are proud and excited to participate in the creation of next generation clearing platform for the global market," said Morten Erichsen, CEO of NOS ASA.
"The partnership with NOS simplifies pan-Nordic derivatives clearing and is another important step in making the Nordic Baltic derivatives market more efficient. Combining NOS' and OMX's technology assets, competence and experience to create a next generation clearing system, will reinforce our market leading position," said Magnus Bocker, CEO of OMX.
ABOUT OMX
OMX owns and operates the largest securities market in the Northern Europe and is a leading provider of marketplace services and solutions for the financial and energy markets. OMX consists of two divisions: OMX Exchanges and OMX Technology. OMX Exchanges owns and operates the stock exchanges in Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius as well as the central securities depositories in Estonia and Latvia. Through OMX Exchanges OMX offers access to approximately 80 percent of the Nordic and Baltic securities market. OMX Technology is a world leading provider of solutions and services -- transaction technology, processing and outsourcing -- based on proven technology. OMX is listed on the stock exchanges in Stockholm, Helsinki and Copenhagen. For more information please visit www.omxgroup.com.
ABOUT NOS
NOS ASA (NOS) was established in 1987 and is a publicly traded shareholding company. The company has in excess of 140 shareholders including banks, financial institutions, institutional and private investors as well as employees. NOS ASA is a holding company handling the ownership in the wholly owned subsidiaries NOS Clearing ASA and NOS Technology AS.
NOS Clearing ASA is licensed as a clearing and settlement institution for financial instruments by the Norwegian Ministry of Finance. The company has also been approved by USA's Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for clearing of OTC transactions. NOS Technology AS owns, manages and operates the systems used by NOS Clearing ASA.
NOS offer multi market and multi product clearing services to principals, their intermediaries, exchanges and the OTC markets where derivatives on securities and commodities are traded. The main purpose is to reduce the risk in the conduction of the transactions and maintain open positions in international markets. For more information please visit www.nos.no.
This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net
The following files are available for download:
http://wpy.waymaker.net/client/waymaker1/WOLReleaseFile.aspx?id=129280&fn=wkr0001.pdf