Press releases 2010

32/10
27 September 2010
Exchange's retail bond market sees number of corporate bonds more than triple

- Over 60 additional bonds from issuers including HSBC, FirstGroup, Rolls Royce and Daily Mail & General Trust
- Evolution Securities lead market maker for new bonds
- Broadened range now includes callable bonds

From 27 September 2010 the number of instruments available for trading on the London Stock Exchange's Order book for Retail Bonds (ORB) will be significantly expanded to include an additional 65 corporate bonds and one supranational bond. This will bring the total number of corporate bonds available for trading on the platform to 89, up from 24.

Evolution Securities will act as lead market maker across the entire range of these new additions to the ORB, offering private investors continuous, on-screen two-way prices in bonds issued by companies including HSBC, Barclays, Aviva, FirstGroup, Rolls Royce, Daily Mail & General Trust, and EDF Energy. Investors will also be able to invest in callable bonds through the platform for the first time.

Investors will be able to trade the bonds in typical denominations of £1,000 or less and will not have to pay stamp duty on the transactions. Bonds which mature after five years or more are also eligible to be included in ISAs.

Pietro Poletto, Head of Fixed Income Markets at London Stock Exchange Group, said:

"This flood of new bonds marks a significant milestone in our mission to open up the bond market for private investors in the UK. From Monday, private investors will have transparent access to nearly 150 gilts, supranational and corporate bonds through our retail bond market and we're determined to grow that number further. Investing in bonds should be as simple as investing in shares for British savers. Working with Evolution Securities and a growing number of other participants, we aim to increasingly make that the case."

Michael Dyson, Head of Fixed Income Trading at Evolution Securities, said:

"The additional bonds are an important development for the retail market as investors can now easily build a relatively low cost portfolio across a wide range of names, risks, and maturities. It also reinforces the attraction of this venue for launching new retail bond issues"

ORB was launched on 1 February 2010 in response to growing demand from private investors for greater access to fixed income, and received broad political and industry support. Since then it has attracted three brand new issues specifically designed for the market from Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB and Provident Financial, and a number of existing retail-sized bonds have been made available for trading on the platform.

Following the inclusion of Monday's new securities there will be 50 gilts, 89 corporate and three supranational bonds available for trading on ORB.

- ends -

For further information, lease contact:

Jonny Blostone                                  Press Office +44 (0)20 7797 1222

                                                          newsroom@londonstockexchange.com

Notes to editors:

• A full list of the additional bonds available for trading can be found here.
  
• A dedicated website for private investors, covering ORB can be found at www.londonstockexchange.com/bondsmadeeasy.
  
• Callable bonds are debt securities which an issuer has the right, but not the obligation, to redeem fully at a specified price, on a predetermined date.

About London Stock Exchange Group:

London Stock Exchange Group is Europe's leading diversified exchange business, incorporating Borsa Italiana and the London Stock Exchange. With over 500 member firms and more than 3,000 companies quoted across its markets, the Group operates the largest and most liquid equity marketplace in Europe.

The London Stock Exchange itself is the world's most international exchange with around 600 overseas companies from almost 70 countries. These figures include international companies quoted on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM), the London Stock Exchange's growth market, and the world's most successful market for small and medium sized enterprises with over 1,200 companies.

The Group offers trading in a wide range of instruments, holding the number one position in the trading of exchange-traded products (ETFs and ETCs) and through its interest in MTS, is Europe's leading platform for the trading of fixed income products. Through the Order Book for Retail Bonds and Mercato Telematico delle Obbligazioni (MOT) the Group also offers a comprehensive range of UK and European corporate and government bond trading services. Its Italian Derivatives Exchange Market (IDEM) sees over €2.5 billion worth of trading every day and through EDX London the Group provides a facility for the trading of Scandinavian and Russian equity derivatives.

London Stock Exchange Group also offers post-trade services such as netting, clearing and settlement on an efficient and competitive basis. These include services from Monte Titoli, the Central Securities Depository for all Italian financial instruments, and Cassa di Compensazione & Garanzia (CC&G), which in July 2009 was granted Recognised Overseas Clearing House (ROCH) status by the FSA to operate in the UK.

With the acquisition of MillenniumIT, the Group encompasses a leading developer of low cost high performance trading platforms and financial markets software serving both the industry and the Group's own businesses.

Since February 2010 London Stock Exchange Group has owned a majority stake in Turquoise, a Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF) providing pan-European and US lit and dark equity trading in some 2,000 securities across 19 countries.