Deutsche Börse AG - Introduction

Introduction

Neue Börsenstraße 1
60487 Frankfurt/Main
Germany
Telephone: +49-69-2101-0
Fax: +49-69-2101-2005
Web site: http://www.deutsche-boerse.com

Public Company
Incorporated: 1993
Employees: 3,318
Sales: EUR 1.1 billion (2002)
Stock Exchanges: Frankfurt
Ticker Symbol: DB1
NAIC: 523210 Securities and Commodity Exchanges

Deutsche Börse AG operates a range of trading institutions out of Frankfurt, Germany's financial hub. It vies with the London Stock Exchange and Euronext, a French-Belgian-Dutch exchange, for control of Europe's capital markets. Deutsche Börse offers trading in cash securities on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and trading in futures and options through the Eurex market, which it co-owns with the Swiss exchange. The company is notable for its use of technology, in particular the electronic trading platform Xetra, to achieve efficient trading. Deutsche Börse also offers settlement and clearing services through its subsidiary Clearstream and market information through the DAX index as well as through private information services for professional investors. Deutsche Börse's broad umbrella of services and vertically integrated structure allow it to play a part in nearly all stages of the trading process.

CEO Werner Seifert is credited with transforming the Frankfurt Exchange from a provincial market to a major player on the European stage. The Frankfurt Exchange most recently rose to prominence in the mid-1990s through a dynamic program of technological improvements, mergers, and partnerships. But Frankfurt's status as an international financial center has waxed and waned many times over the centuries since the exchange was founded in the 16th century.