Press releases 2000

24 July 2000

EXCHANGE SIGNS VENDOR ACCESS AGREEMENT WITH BLOOMBERG LP

A new agreement announced today (24 July) between the London Stock Exchange and information service provider Bloomberg LP offers authorised investors low-cost trading access to the Exchange's markets via the Bloomberg Professional™ Service.

Vendor Access Network (VAN) connections enable UK and overseas investment houses to trade on the Exchange using the vendor's network - as an alternative to establishing direct leased-line links to the Exchange. This brings the London market within easy reach of vendors' current clients and cuts costs for smaller firms seeking remote access to London.

Bloomberg, which has 140,000 terminals worldwide, gained acceptance after completing rigorous testing procedures. Under the arrangement, vendor access network providers agree to provide a level of service which maintains the integrity of the London market.

Anja Seiler, Bloomberg's Exchange Connectivity Manager, said: "We are delighted to offer our customers global access to the Exchange via a direct link . With a Bloomberg terminal, our customers can trade on SETS, adding another liquidity pool to Bloomberg's fast-growing electronic trading platform. This will be further enhanced by the introduction of a Xetra connection and non-member to member order routing."

The Exchange said: "We are delighted to announce this agreement with Bloomberg. This will make London's markets available to a broad range of investors both in the UK and abroad, both efficiently and cost-effectively."

Editors' notes:

1) UK firms need to be authorised under the Financial Services Act 1986. Overseas firms must be authorised in their home state to provide investment services in the UK. Within the EU firms can obtain a 'passport' under the Investment Services Directive or the Second Banking Co-ordination Directive which allows authorised investment firms to operate in every European Union Member State (and EEA).

2) A current list of software vendors and VAN providers can be found on the Exchange's website: www.londonstockexchange.com.