One continent - one stock market?
A scattered approach to settlement
The battle to provide the benchmark in euro-zone equities is shaping up to be a three-way fight between FTSE-Eurotop, Dow Jones-Stoxx and MSCI. The index which eventually gains acceptance, whichever it is, will inevitably have a significant impact on the way in which exchanges structure stock trading.
Some feel that the most logical development is for the exchanges themselves to have joint and vested interest in the benchmark. "There is an incentive for there to be a recognized exchange-supported euro index of which the exchanges are all part, which they all own and which you can access from any point. If they don't do that then they may lose out," suggests Jeremy Isaacs, managing director and head of European equities at Lehman Brothers in London. Of the current contenders, such an approach would clearly favour the Dow Jones-Stoxx indices, in which SBF-Bourse de Paris, Deutsche Börse and Swiss Exchange are partners along with Dow Jones.
"The thing that is up for grabs is the index that will be quoted on the TV and used for futures contracts," says Dean Buckley, chief investment officer of UK and European equity at HSBC Asset Management.