BGC Group
announced today (Tuesday) that its subsidiary BGC Brokers has received
authorization from the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to operate as a
registered benchmark administrator under the U.K. Benchmarks Regulation.
The
approval allows BGC to administer swaps pricing benchmarks for EUR interest
rate swaps, GBP interest rate swaps, cross-currency swaps, and EU and U.K.
inflation swaps. Reference pages for these products are now available on
Bloomberg and LSEG platforms.
BGC Expands Benchmark
Offerings
Nadim
Mourad, executive managing director at BGC, said the
registration reflects the firm’s position as “one of the world’s leading
interest rate derivatives brokers with a comprehensive benchmark reference page
for EUR, GBP swaps, inflation, and cross-currency products, covering the full
forward curve.”
The
benchmark authorization follows BGC’s recent business expansion moves. BGC acquired
Macro Hive in
October 2025 to integrate AI technology into its rates and foreign exchange
trading operations. The company also posted a 31%
jump in third-quarter revenue and reaffirmed its fourth-quarter outlook in December.
Sean
Windeatt, co-chief executive officer at BGC, added the company looks forward to
“expanding our benchmark offerings into other products and markets.”
BGC
operates as a broker for fixed income, foreign exchange, energy, commodities,
and equities products. The firm’s clients include banks, investment banks,
trading firms, hedge funds, and corporations. BGC also runs FMX Futures
Exchange, a U.S. interest rate futures exchange.
What FCA Registration
Means
FCA
benchmark administrator authorization requires firms to meet strict governance
and operational standards. Administrators must establish effective
organizational arrangements, maintain market integrity, and ensure benchmark
continuity.
The
registration allows supervised entities in the U.K. to use BGC’s benchmarks for
valuation and risk management, as firms can only use benchmarks from
administrators listed on the FCA register.
The U.K.
Benchmarks Regulation puts administrators under direct FCA supervision for the
provision of reference rates used in financial contracts. This includes
external auditor assessments or home jurisdiction supervision requirements.
Competitor Precedent
BGC joins
other interdealer brokers with FCA benchmark administrator status. TP ICAP’s
Parameta Solutions received FCA authorization in May 2022 to administer nine
benchmarks.
The FCA
maintains a public register of authorized and registered benchmark
administrators. Third-country administrators must receive approval through
recognition or endorsement regimes by December 2030.
This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.
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