By Nicholas Earl
The London Metal Exchange (LME) has made fresh changes to its senior team, announcing a new chief executive for its clearing house.
Michael Carty has been appointed to head LME Clear, joining from Euroclear Group as the world’s oldest exchange looks externally to for its next long-term appointment.
He will begin his new role on 2 October.
Euroclear is a Belgian financial services group specialising in securities transaction across the continent, where Carty has held various senior roles over the last 15 years.
This includes chief information officer and chief operations officer for Euroclear Sweden and Euroclear Finland, chief executive of Euroclear Sweden and, most recently, chief executive of Euroclear UK and International.
David Warren, chairman of the LME Clear board, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Michael to LME Clear and look forward to working alongside him. A highly regarded industry leader, his expertise and international experience in clearing and financial infrastructure will be of great benefit to LME Clear as we evolve and drive forward our business and markets in a dynamic macro landscape.”
James Cressy will step down as interim chief executive of LME Clear, remaining with LME Group when Carty joins LME Clear this autumn.
This is the latest in raft of moves at the organisation’s top table this year,following David Warren’s appointment as chair of LME Clear’s board this month, alongside the replacement of its legal counsel and chair earlier this year.
The London Metal Exchange has been at the centre of controversy after it suspended trading on 8 March last year, when prices hit record highs of $100,000 per ton, driven by a failed short attempt by Chinese billionaire and Tsingshan Holdings owner Xiang Guangda.
It then later decided to cancel eight hours of trades worth a combined sum of $3.9bn, as it determined prices no longer reflected market conditions.
This decision triggered lawsuits from two investors who lost out from the decision – Elliott Investment Management and Jane Street.
Their cases were heard in court last month, with a verdict expected in the autumn.
The Bank of England has also confirmed LME Clear will face supervisory action, following its auditing of last March’s events, with a representative reporting back to the institution to ensure the clearing house is taking agreed steps to improve its risk management capabilities.
