LONDON (Reuters) - UK-based Bats Europe, the largest European stock exchange by value of shares traded, said on Monday that it will launch a range of UK-focussed benchmark indexes.
The exchange will launch 18 different indexes covering large- to small-cap securities and 12 industry sectors. The indices will be highly correlated with comparable benchmarks, Mark Hemsley, chief executive officer of Bats Europe, said.
Several UK-headquartered wealth management firms, which collectively manage more than 200 billion pounds, have contributed to the development of the indexes and supported the project, the company said.
The indexes will be offered free to private and professional investors, media firms and for benchmarking purposes. However, brokerages and asset managers using them internally will pay a fee to use the indexes.
The launch will pit Bats against providers such as FTSE and MSCI Inc (N:MSCI) that dominate the indexes business globally.
Bats Europe has maintained its position as the top regional stock exchange through 2016 with a roughly 20 percent share of total equity trading by value, according to Thomson Reuters Market Share Reporter.