LME boss Matthew Chamberlain says he has a plan to restore trust in his business and win back business following the cancellation of eight hours-worth of nickel trades last month, according to a report by Financial News (FN).

When Nickel prices surged in March following Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, Chamberlain authorise the trade cancellations in a bid to avoid 'multiple defaults and systematic risk'. Several disgruntled traders, including hedge fund Elliot Advisers and Jane Street Trading, have subsequently launched legal action against LME and reduced their trading activity in nickel and other metals markets.  

Speaking in an interview with FN, Chamberlain said: “I don’t want to minimise the anger. The firm felt cancelling trades was the right tool for the right reasons. If there has been a loss of confidence as a result, we want to do everything we can to rebuild that.”

The LME has now introduced new limits on daily price swings in metals with spikes or drops in excess of 15% triggering automatic halts.