by APEX News | 2018-12-10
London, Singapore – 10 December, 2018 – FXCM Group, LLC (“FXCM Group” or “FXCM”), a leading international provider of online foreign exchange trading, CFD trading and related services, together with the Asia Pacific Exchange (“APEX”) today announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), agreeing to collaborate on launching new and innovative products on the APEX Exchange.
Zhu Yuchen, CEO of APEX, stated: “APEX is a firm believer in promoting the development of the local industries in futures and options contracts covering both commodity and financial derivatives products in the Asia Pacific region. We provide a fair, transparent and efficient platform for various enterprises to compete globally, and have chosen to partner with FXCM for their experience and expertise in the Asia pacific region with the trading community.”
Siju Daniel, Chief Commercial Officer of FXCM Group noted: “With FXCM’s long history and expertise as one of the world’s leading FX and CFD brokers, working alongside an approved exchange and clearing house in Singapore, we believe we can create new innovative product offerings and are enthusiastic on the many possibilities. We look forward to sharing them with the market in the future.”
Zhu Yuchen, CEO of APEX, signed the agreement in Singapore on Wednesday December 5th with Siju Daniel, Chief Commercial Officer of FXCM Group.
by APEX News | 2018-11-14
APEX successfully facilitated the first Exchange of Futures for Physicals (EFP) for the APEX RBD Palm Olein Futures Contract PF1811 on 9th November 2018, following the conclusion of the first physical delivery on 28th October 2018. A total of 20,000 MT of Palm Olein was transacted through the EFP facility, as part of APEX commitment to fulfil the different needs of the Palm Oil industry participants.
Mr Esmond Choo, Senior Executive Director of UOB Kay Hian mentioned, “The use of EFP as the contract settlement method will provide our corporate clients dealing with Palm Olein an additional delivery choice aside from the current conventional physical delivery method. This heralds an important industry development as APEX contract settlement offers greater flexibility to commercial and corporate traders in how they manage their delivery commitments.”
The EFP Transaction is an alternative form of settlement procedure offered by APEX besides physical delivery, providing traders with an additional option for contract settlement. The EFP Transaction involved three parties namely, Wilmar International Limited, Inter-Continental Oils and Fats Pte Ltd and AAA Oils & Fats Pte Ltd. The EFP intention was submitted to APEX’s Clearing Members, UOB Kay Hian Private Limited and KGI Securities (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. before the expiration of the PF11 contract.
The RBD Palm Olein Futures Contract is the first derivative product launched by APEX and has attracted strong interests from the market since it was listed on 25th May 2018. As of 13th November 2018, the average daily trade volume is around 50,000 lots and Open Interest was 7113 lots.
by APEX News | 2018-10-28
On 28th October 2018, Asia Pacific Exchange (APEX) completed the cargo loading of the first physical delivery under its first contract, APEX RBD Palm Olein Futures Contract PF1809, through the free on board (FOB) method. This inaugural delivery of 4000 MT of product took place in Dumai Port, Indonesia, where the product will be shipped to Pakistan subsequently. The successful delivery was attributed to the close cooperation between the buyer and seller and APEX’s Clearing Members, KGI Securities (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. and UOB Kay Hian Private Limited.
Both buyer and seller were pleased with APEX’s physical delivery process. The statement from the seller, AAA Oils & Fats Pte Ltd can be found below.
“We have started to trade APEX RBD Palm Olein futures since the launch of the contract. This contract fills the need in the market for a USD-denominated palm olein futures that covers the Indonesian FOB market, and we observed that it has attracted more participation as can be seen in the increasing open interest.
We are delighted to participate in the first delivery of the APEX Palm Olein contract. APEX’s FOB settlement and delivery mechanism is comprehensive yet simple, which is similar to international trade standards. Through this participation, we are now more confident with trading and delivery of APEX Palm Olein futures contract.”
–Mr Alex Tan, Deputy Commercial Director, AAA Oils & Fats Pte Ltd
The RBD Palm Olein Futures Contract is the first derivative product launched by APEX and has attracted strong interests from the market since it was listed on 25th May 2018. As of 26th October 2018, the average daily trade volume was 51,000 lots and average daily trade value was USD$ 601 million. The overall open interest has been increasing steadily, and there will be more physical deliveries expected in the upcoming contract months.
About APEX
APEX is the third exchange with the “Approved Exchange” and “Approved Clearing House” licenses in Singapore. APEX’s business scope covers futures and options contracts covering both commodity and financial derivatives products, including derivative products in the asset classes of agriculture, energy, petrochemical, metal, foreign exchange, interest rates, bonds and stock indices.
After the successful launch of APEX RBD Palm Olein Futures Contract, which has seen a steady increase in market interest and open positions, APEX launched its second product, the USD/CNH Futures Contract on 19th October 2018. As the world’s first weekly UC contract, the USD/CNH Futures Contract covers three cycles, weekly, monthly and quarterly tenors. The contract is priced at US$ 10,000 per lot and utilizes the cash settlement method, meeting the needs of a wide spectrum of clients. In less than two weeks of the contract launch, the average daily trade volume has reached 21,850 lots.
Going forward, APEX will continue to enhance its product line to provide better services for global investors and improve market interconnectivity across different markets. APEX also aims to improve enhance the efficiency of price discovery, so as to develop a bridge to link trade and economic development within the Asia-Pacific region.
by APEX News | 2018-10-19
1) Launch of UC Contract
On 19th October 2018, 9am Singapore time, Asia Pacific Exchange (APEX) officially launched the USD/CNH (offshore RMB) Futures Contract (Contract Code: UC) for trading. The listing ceremony was graced by our Clearing members, bank representatives, corporate partners and other distinguished guests.
On the first day of trading, the most active contract is UC1811W1. As of 10:17 AM, the contract traded at a high of CNH6.9517/USD, and a low of CNH6.9447/USD. The total traded volume was 182, the total turnover is 1,820,000USD.
With the acceleration of the internationalization of the RMB, the international status of the RMB has been on the rise. On 1 October 2016, the RMB became the first emerging market currency to be included in the IMF’s special drawing rights (SDR) basket, becoming one of global reserve currencies together with US Dollar, Euro, Pound and Japanese Yen. Currently, more than 60 countries and territories had already begun to use RMB as an alternative reserve currency. The RMB is now widely used in global trade and investment.
The pace of reform of the RMB exchange rate regime is gaining momentum with greater international trade flows, resulting in trends of higher volatility and increased fluctuation in both directions of the exchange rate. Hence, the demand for a hedging instrument for companies and investors to manage their RMB exposure is increasing.
The RMB circulating outside China mainland becomes offshore RMB, with largest deposit centres located in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and London. Based on BIS Trienniel Survey of foreign exchange and OTC derivatives trading, offshore RMB OTC transaction value had increased from an average daily value (ADV) of USD 86 billion in 2013 to USD147 billion in 2016.
In the exchange traded space, the absolute value is relatively lower, but the growth rate is much faster. The ADV has grown from US$48 million in 2013 to US$322 million in 2016 and further to US$2.5 billion in 2018.
APEX UC contract differentiates itself with three major features for new business opportunities.
2) APEX UC Contract: Three major features
Firstly, in addition to the conventional monthly and quarterly tenors, the contract covers near term tenors through its weekly contracts. As the world’s first weekly USD/CNH Contract, APEX UC Contract series include “4 near-term consecutive weekly Contracts followed by 3 consecutive monthly Contracts and 3 consecutive quarterly Contracts”, on a rolling basis.
The weekly contract introduces the most popular OTC market tenor into the exchange-traded space, and will offer market participants the flexibility to manage their short and long-term RMB exposure.
Secondly, APEX UC Contract have a face value of US$ 10,000 per lot. The small contract size enables market participants to manage their RMB exposure more precisely, thereby better managing tail risks. The small contract size is also expected to attract a more diverse pool of market participants with different investment and hedging needs.
Thirdly, the use of cash settlement is efficient and convenient for market participants. The contract’s final settlement price is based on the USD/CNY (HK) Spot Rate published by the Treasury Markets Association of Hong Kong (TMA), the authoritative pricing benchmark for the spot exchange rate between USD and offshore RMB. On the last trading day, customers only need to settle their expiring positions’ profit and loss without the need to swap the face value of the contract, hence increasing their capital efficiencies.
3) Updates on APEX first product: APEX RBD Palm Olein Futures
Since APEX’s inaugural launch on 25th May 2018, its first product, the APEX RBD Palm Olein Futures Contract, has gained significant traction among market participants. We have seen increasing involvement from commercial clients, which has resulted in a steady increase in APEX Palm Olein Futures Contracts’ open interest. The trading prices of the APEX Palm Olein Futures Contracts are now highly correlated with the prices of similar OTC and exchange-traded palm oil and palm olein contracts and the FOB paper market, a sign that it is achieving its price discovery function.
APEX has a diversified and multi-level clientele base, including various manufacturer, producers, traders, financial institutions, professional investment funds and individual customers, forming a comprehensive market ecosystem.
For physical delivery of its Palm Olein Contract, APEX has adopted a challenging, but the most effective FOB physical delivery method. The designated delivery ports are located on both sides of the Straits of Malacca, including Malaysia’s Port Klang and Pasir Gudang, and Indonesia’s Dumai and Belawan ports. They are the most important ports for palm olein exports, as they are near the main palm oil production areas. Facilities at the ports are ideal, with the palm oil processing plant and storage tanks surrounding the harbour.
4) APEX: Moving forward
APEX aims to achieve a series of important functions such as price discovery and risk management. Following the smooth trading of the Palm Olein Contract and the successful launch of the UC contract, APEX will subsequently introduce other derivative contracts, ranging from agricultural, energy, metals, FX, Interest rate and stock indexes to provide a comprehensive suite of products. Ultimately, APEX aims to offer a diverse range of products and services to serve all types of clienteles, and to support the continued rise of the Asian economy.
Currently, the real time market data of APEX Contracts can be retrieved through data terminals such as Thomson Reuters, Bloomberg, WIND Financial Terminal, AdvisorXs, Esunny, myTrader (Wenhua) and Pobo5. The APEX official website www.asiapacificex.com also provides real-time quotes.
by APEX News | 2018-09-10
With this new launch, Thomson Reuters will support real time data for APEX on its ultra-low latency data distribution network, Elektron.
Apex provides Level 1 Quote data and Level 2 Market by Price data. The RIC syntax for Apex for Level 1 and Level 2 MBP on Elektron is as follows:
Palm Oil Futures : ATOPF
RIC : + < 1 Character Month code > + < 1-digit Year code >
Sample RICs: ATOPFV8, ATOPFU8
The RIC syntax for APEX for Legacy Level 2 on Elektron is as follows:
RIC – + < 1 Character Month code > + < 1-digit Year code > +
Sample RICs – ATOPFV8d, ATOPFU8d
Futures Depth Chain: 0# + + < 1 Character Month code > + < 1-digit Year code >
Sample RICs 0#ATOPFU8
Futures List Chain: 0# + + “:”
Sample RIC: 0#ATOPF:
Why is the change occurring:
Asia Pacific Exchange-APEX, is an international derivatives exchange approved by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the third exchange with the “Approved Exchange” and “Approved Clearing House” licenses in Singapore. Thomson Reuters will support the real time data of RBD Palm Olein Futures
contracts
What is the impact of the change:
Permissioned Thomson Reuters Customers will have access to the new Apex content. The data will be supported on Eikon and Data scope products.
File code impacted : 5847
File Code Name : Asia Pacific Exch (APEX) Futures
Datascope Clients will receive MR (Rename) and OT/RT
(Opportunity/Revision Record for Futures)
These Changes will be available in 07th Sep 2018, EM010907.m/EM110907.m as on 07th Sep 2018.
All reference fields containing the RIC Root or RIC’s will be impacted by this change
Current (End of Day) – – > New (Real time)
RIC Root : AXPOF — > RIC Root : ATOPF
Current Sample RIC : AXPOFU8 — > New Sample RIC : ATOPFU8
What action do you need to take:
Thomson Reuters customers need to make note of the above change and have to setup their trading system accordingly. In order to subscribe to this Elektron offering please ensure you are permissioned for this orderable service and subscribe/map your systems to ingest data from PE 2923.
What are the commercial details:
The end user fees are waived until 30 June 2019.
What does this mean if you redistribute content:
Clients will need to contact APEX directly for details on any other fees if applicable.
What additional information is available:
For additional information related to APEX Palm oil futures, please refer to the speed guide
Please refer to the attachment for additional details. There will be a separate DN raised to communicate the RIC rename on historical database.
