Following a board meeting last week, International Petroleum Exchange (IPE) has announced plans to close its oil and gas trading pits on 7 April and re-open as a fully electronic exchange the next day. The move has been widely anticipated ahead of New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex)'s opening of London pits.
In a statement, IPE said that the decision had been taken in order to "maintain and enhance the competitive position of IPE as well as to take advantage of the greater acceptance and adoption of electronic trading."
A memo sent to members and obtained by FO Week offered slightly more detail, saying, "The competition has now changed significantly and this paired with the increasing acceptance of electronic trading has set the backdrop for the [IPE] board's decision to complete the transition to a fully electronic model."
The memo went on to say that the exchange could...