November saw record volumes for LCH.Clearnet’s interest rate swap clearing service, SwapClear.

The total number of cleared OTC trades for the month reached 76,650 trade sides, 12 per cent more than October and a 24 per cent increase on November 2009.

The increased figures bring the total outstanding number of IRS transactions to 1,720,390 trade sides with a notional value of USD248.3trn equivalent.

The last quarter saw an average of 3,309 trade sides cleared daily and over the last five years the notional value has risen at a 40 per cent per annum compound rate.

Michael Davie, chief executive, SwapClear at LCH.Clearnet said: “The strong growth in IRS volumes indicates that SwapClear’s clients recognise the benefits of a cost-effective, high-performing clearing service which complements the flexibility of OTC trading. The regulatory changes, aimed at strengthening financial stability, mean that participants will increasingly seek to manage their risk through central clearing. We are delighted to see demand for such services continue to grow ahead of the implementation of the legislative reforms.”

Established over 11 years ago, SwapClear’s membership now clears trades for 35 direct members and their clients, while the product scope has grown to cover the world’s 14 largest currencies with tenors up to 50 years in USD, EUR and GBP.

SwapClear now clears approximately 50 per cent of the market by notional value and has cleared over 2.7 million trades since launch in 1999.