Intercontinental Exchange has begun trading gold, silver, platinum and palladium futures in London, priced off the daily auctions it operates in the city — a market source puts the launch in the first week of October.
London dominates physical gold, with over $190 billion a day in over-the-counter deals, yet it never sustained a futures market: the LME shuttered its gold futures in 2022 after five years of weak volume.
The launch lands as geopolitics reshape bullion flows: the Dutch central bank relocated more than 78 tonnes of gold from New York to London last month citing ‘increasing geopolitical unrest’, while France and India have repatriated theirs. ICE Futures Europe president Chris Rhodes says derivatives markets exist to support the physical market — ‘and the physical market is in London.’
The report notes ICE’s auction has grown from 4 to 20 participants, with daily volumes above 424,000 ounces.
