OM Gruppen do it Jiway with European share trading

NEWS Jiway is the first equities exchange to be recognised by the Financial Services Authority (FAS) since Tradepoint in 1995. The launch follows a flurry of activity in the market, with attempts to establish pan-European low-cost trading systems. The volume of pan-European trades of this nature is quite small. That may be partly because of traditional high transaction costs of clearance and settlement procedures in Europe that ventures like Jiway are trying to address. It is hoped that with 11 EU countries now using the Euro, the increased price transparency and the removal of exchange rate risks between those countries may act as a stimulus to increase cross-border Euro trades. The venture is 40 per cent owned by Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. Much of the behind-the-scenes support for pan-European exchanges has been from US investment houses such as Morgan Stanley as they hope to develop an increased European trading market by increasing competition and lowering prices through reduced transaction costs. By Nik Hole For news, interviews and reports on how ebusiness is shaping the global economy, check out silicon.com's Global Ebusiness Special Report http://www.silicon.com/global - watching the world click.