SGX to boost freight derivatives with pursuit of Baltic Exchange

Boosting operations: An employee works at a front desk of the Singapore Exchange head office. The bourse has struggled in recent years, losing out to Hong Kong as the main destination for large initial public offerings in the region and the proposed acquisition of Baltic Exchange is one of several efforts by new CEO Loh Boon Chye to revive its fortunes. — Reuters

SINGAPORE: Singapore Exchange’s (SGX) bid to buy London’s Baltic Exchange is aimed at burnishing its derivatives credentials among ship brokers and commodity merchants, fitting hand in glove with its efforts to develop Asian pricing benchmarks for bulk commodities.

The bourse has struggled in recent years, losing out to Hong Kong as the main destination for large initial public offerings (IPOs) in the region and the proposed acquisition is one of several efforts by new CEO Loh Boon Chye to revive its fortunes.