The world's clearing houses are now up against a higher level of competition than ever before. Faced with the plethora of new trading platforms and electronic communications networks (ECNs), these institutions are having to rethink their role in the new millennium.

Looking to protect their market position, futures clearing houses are investigating ways to add value. For example, many are expanding product support facilities, exploring ways to reduce collateral requirements, looking to introduce over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives clearing, and developing services for the new business-to-business (B2B) e-trading platforms.