JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank were negotiating with potential buyers as DW went to press Thursday for their collectively owned database of reference entity names for credit-default swaps, and Mark-it Partners in St. Albans, U.K. was the frontrunner. Andy Brindle, head of global derivatives at JPMorgan in New York, said no decision had been made. Officials at Mark-it Partners could not be reached.
The reference entity database (REDs) is a collaborative effort the three banks put together over the past 12 months to establish a comprehensive list of all the relevant reference entities in the credit derivatives market. Brindle said the group is selling the database so that it can be developed further and become available to the entire market as a resource.
REDs is designed to eliminate a mismatch in credit default contracts resulting from dealers on either side of the trade using slightly different reference entities, added a JPM spokeswoman. Officials at Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank were not available for comment at press time.