Icap ups its China presence with renminbi deal

Broker Icap made a bigger push into mainland China today by clinching a government-backed contract to overhaul its currency and bonds trading system.

The £45 million deal will see Icap subsidiary EBS BrokerTec upgrade China’s Foreign Exchange Trade System, which is owned by the People’s Bank of China and has volumes worth 705 trillion yuan (£74 trillion) every year.

Icap, headed by Michael Spencer, first entered China nine years ago with an interbank broking service.

The country is preparing to give its renminbi currency a bigger presence on the global stage and needs newer kit to put it on a par with more developed FX markets.