LME has Three Silver Fix Alternatives in the Works

Reuters reported that the London Metal Exchange (LME) said it’s able to offer three alternatives to the London silver fix, which will cease to be administered at the end of the day on August 14, 2014.

As quoted in the market news:

The LME, owned by Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd, had already proposed an alternative to the current telephone-based method, with better auditing and compliance.

This would include an independent chairman from the LME pricing committee, LME executives told a presentation in London.

A ring-based solution came from strong industry demand, but there may be difficulty in finding sufficient liquidity, he added.

‘The challenge is to make sure there is sufficient ring representation in the silver ring as in the base metals ring.’

Silver market players are in favour of an electronic, auction-based system for setting a benchmark price, the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) said earlier this month.

[Matthew Chamberlain, head of business development at the LME] said this electronic solution was the ‘most difficult to achieve in such a short period of time’.

Click here to read the full Reuters report.