Launch Extends Equities Access to Gulf and Indian Markets

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), a leading global provider of technology and data, today announced plans to launch MSCI® Equity Index Futures contracts on ICE Futures Abu Dhabi on February 24, 2025, subject to regulatory review.

This launches a new asset class for trading at ICE Futures Abu Dhabi and will include: Micro MSCI GCC Countries Index Futures, Micro MSCI Qatar Index Futures, Micro MSCI UAE Index Futures and Micro MSCI India Index Futures. The contracts, all denominated in US dollars, will provide investors with a way to access Gulf and Indian equity markets and manage equity risk in the region.

“The introduction of the new index futures marks a transformative step in advancing financial markets in the region and strengthening the connectivity with global capital flows,” said Nabeel Albloushi, Head of Markets and Securities Services, HSBC Middle East, North Africa and Turkiye. “These products will support increasing market liquidity, provide hedging solutions and empower clients locally and globally to access and manage risk.”

“The MSCI UAE, Qatar, and GCC Index Futures play a key role in reinforcing the region’s financial infrastructure and allow local and international investors to be part of the journey, while the introduction of the MSCI India Index Future highlights the growing importance of the Middle East-Asia corridor, enabling investors to leverage growth opportunities in one of the largest emerging markets globally,” continued Albloushi.

“We welcome ICE Futures Abu Dhabi’s expansion into regional stock indexes and further development in regional derivatives markets,” said Adam Kamyar, Head of MENA & APAC, Winton Capital. “These new instruments will further support the growing participation of quantitative investment strategies in MENA markets and the development of innovative investment products.”

“We are excited to team up with ICE to introduce equity index futures, leveraging MSCI's trusted index methodologies and ICE's leading trading infrastructure," said George Harrington, Managing Director, MSCI. "This collaboration marks an important step forward in providing the market with innovative tools for equity trading and underscores our commitment to growing markets in the Middle East.”

“ICE is building on its energy offering on ICE Futures Abu Dhabi to serve investor demand for transparent, standardized, and flexible access to regional Gulf equity markets,” said Gary King, President of ICE Futures Abu Dhabi. “With this offering tailored for the Gulf region, ICE is connecting local and global investors, providing enhanced opportunities for strategic trading and risk management in equity markets and broadening ICE Futures Abu Dhabi to this new asset class.”

ICE is already home to the most liquid markets to trade the benchmark MSCI ACWI, MSCI EAFE, MSCI Emerging Markets, MSCI ESG and MSCI Climate indexes with ICE accounting for over 70% of all MSCI Futures trading by volume. In 2024, average daily volume for ICE’s MSCI complex was equal to an estimated $13.6 billion of notional value.

For more information on MSCI Equity Index Futures, please visit the ICE MSCI Index Derivatives page.

About Intercontinental Exchange

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) is a Fortune 500 company that designs, builds and operates digital networks that connect people to opportunity. We provide financial technology and data services across major asset classes helping our customers access mission-critical workflow tools that increase transparency and efficiency. ICE’s futures, equity, and options exchanges – including the New York Stock Exchange – and clearing houses help people invest, raise capital and manage risk. We offer some of the world’s largest markets to trade and clear energy and environmental products. Our fixed income, data services and execution capabilities provide information, analytics and platforms that help our customers streamline processes and capitalize on opportunities. At ICE Mortgage Technology, we are transforming U.S. housing finance, from initial consumer engagement through loan production, closing, registration and the long-term servicing relationship. Together, ICE transforms, streamlines and automates industries to connect our customers to opportunity.

Trademarks of ICE and/or its affiliates include Intercontinental Exchange, ICE, ICE block design, NYSE and New York Stock Exchange. Information regarding additional trademarks and intellectual property rights of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. and/or its affiliates is located here. Key Information Documents for certain products covered by the EU Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products Regulation can be accessed on the relevant exchange website under the heading “Key Information Documents (KIDS).”

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 – Statements in this press release regarding ICE's business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of additional risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see ICE's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, including, but not limited to, the risk factors in ICE's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as filed with the SEC on February 8, 2024.

Category: EXCHANGES

ICE-CORP

Source: Intercontinental Exchange

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