
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group’s subsidiary MUFG Bank plans to start brokering and clearing Japan power futures on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM), the company announced on August 30, 2024.
According to TOCOM’s operator Japan Exchange Group (JPX), MUFG Bank is set to acquire a membership on the energy exchange on September 6, 2024, from which point it will be able to “offer services from brokerage to clearing of TOCOM’s Electricity (Power) Futures to both local and global market participants.” The bank was also approved by Japan Securities Clearing Corporation (JSCC) for the company’s energy futures clearing qualification.
MUFG Bank plans to start brokering and clearing TOCOM power futures in October 2024. “By leveraging MUFG’s creditworthiness, the Bank aims to contribute to the enhancement of price hedging functions in the overall power trading market by increasing trading volume in the power futures market,” said MUFG Bank Global Markets Unit’s Chief Executive Hiroyuki Seki.
“MUFG’s participation will be the first case of a Japanese mega-bank in the listed commodity futures market in over 70 years since the restructuring of the modern commodity exchanges, as well as the first company to become a Broker Member of TOCOM since the merger of Japan Exchange Group, Inc. and TOCOM in 2019,” said TOCOM’s President Ishizaki Takashi.
While the volume of power futures traded on TOCOM has been growing, the exchange continues to lag behind the European Energy Exchange (EEX), which holds an approximately 90% market share.