TORONTO, April 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- S&P Dow Jones Indices announced today that it has licensed the Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corporation (CDCC) to clear Over-The-Counter (OTC) options based on the S&P/TSX suite of indices. This is the first license for clearing OTC trades in Canada.

The licensing agreement between S&P Dow Jones Indices and CDCC covers all S&P/TSX indices, providing the potential for greater risk management in the OTC equity derivatives marketplace served by these key indices. CDCC expects to launch the clearing service through its Converge offering in June 2013.

"The S&P/TSX family of indices is widely considered to be the leading measure of equity market performance in Canada," says Alexander Matturri, CEO at S&P Dow Jones Indices. "This licensing agreement is a prime example of S&P Dow Jones Indices bringing additional transparency and insight to Canadian investors through its closely followed benchmarks."

"This agreement represents a natural evolution for CDCC's Converge OTC clearing service," says Alain Miquelon, President and CEO of the Montreal Exchange and Group Head, Derivatives.  "We are pleased to work with S&P Dow Jones Indices on bringing increased capital efficiency and risk reduction to the Canadian OTC equity derivatives market."

For more information on the S&P/TSX family of indices, please visit: www.spindices.com.

CDCC is also the issuer, clearinghouse and guarantor of exchange traded derivatives in Canada and exclusive clearinghouse to Montreal Exchange.  Please visit www.cdcc.ca for more information about CDCC.

About S&P Dow Jones Indices

S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., is the world's largest, global resource for index-based concepts, data and research. Home to iconic financial market indicators, such as the S&P 500® and the Dow Jones Industrial Average^SM, S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC has over 115 years of experience constructing innovative and transparent solutions that fulfill the needs of institutional and retail investors. More assets are invested in products based upon our indices than any other provider in the world. With over 830,000 indices covering a wide range of asset classes across the globe, S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC defines the way investors measure and trade the markets. To learn more about our company, please visit www.spdji.com.

Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC ("S&P"), a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC ("Dow Jones").  These trademarks have been licensed to S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones, S&P and their respective affiliates (collectively "S&P Dow Jones Indices") do not sponsor, endorse, sell, or promote any investment fund or other investment vehicle that is offered by third parties and that seeks to provide an investment return based on the performance of any index. This document does not constitute an offer of services in jurisdictions where S&P Dow Jones Indices does not have the necessary licenses. S&P Dow Jones Indices receives compensation in connection with licensing its indices to third parties.

About TMX Group (TSX-X)

TMX Group's key subsidiaries operate cash and derivative markets for multiple asset classes including equities, fixed income and energy. Toronto Stock Exchange, TSX Venture Exchange, TMX Select, Alpha Group, The Canadian Depository for Securities, Montreal Exchange, Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corporation, Natural Gas Exchange, BOX Options Exchange, Shorcan, Shorcan Energy Brokers, Equicom and other TMX Group companies provide listing markets, trading markets, clearing facilities, data products and other services to the global financial community.  TMX Group is headquartered in Toronto and operates offices across Canada (Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver), in key U.S. markets (New York, Houston, Boston and Chicago) as well as in London, Beijing and Sydney.  For more information about TMX Group, visit our website at www.tmx.com.  Follow TMX Group on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tmxgroup.

CONTACT:  David R. Guarino, S&P Dow Jones Indices, Communications, 212-438-1471, dave_guarino@spdji.com, or Abigail Etches, S&P Dow Jones Indices, Canadian Indices, 416-507-3203, abigail_etches@spdji.com, or Carolyn Quick, TMX Group, Communications, 416-947-4597, carolyn.quick@tmx.com

SOURCE S&P Dow Jones Indices