LOOSE CHANGE

The G20 estimates the cost of setting up CLS Services, the private UK company that will develop a real-time system for settling FX transactions, at around $90 million, up from the previous estimate of $40 million, sources close to the group say. Rob Close, programme director for the G20, says the initial estimate was tentative and the group is currently reassessing the cost of the venture.

Bankers Trust Australia in Sydney has signed a letter of intent to join FXNet, and expects to be live with the bilateral netting service by mid-1998, officials say. Bankers Trust branches in London, New York and Singapore are already active FXNet participants. "We expect FXNet to make a significant contribution to our FX settlement risk reduction processes, as well as reduce counterparty exposures," says Michael Sue of Bankers Trust Australia. Bankers will be the second FXNet counterparty in Australia, joining Westpac, which has been live in Sydney since last year. FXNet Services, a division of EBS Dealing Resources, has roughly 90 counterparty banks currently using the system to reduce settlement risk.

Euromoney Publications announced last week that it was acquiring the US business press group Institutional Investor for $142 million (£85.5 million) from ABC, an indirect subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company. II derives 73 per cent of its revenues within the US, while most of Euromoney's financial publishing revenues are international. II publishes Institutional Investor, as well as 23 newsletters and other journals, research and bank data, and has a conference division.

Chase Manhattan Bank's New York-based FX group moves into a new dealing room at Chemical's old headquarters at 270 Park Avenue today, sources confirm.

Parker Global Strategies, which produces the Parker FX Index, a benchmark for measuring the performance of currency managers, announced that it has acquired the Ferrell FX Index, which also follows the performance of currency managers. The Parker FX Index, which is the newer index, was founded by Virginia Parker, who also created the Ferrell FX Index. Unlike the latter one, Parker's newer index measures the unleveraged, or risk-adjusted risk performance of the fund managers.

Swift has signed a contract with the European Monetary Institute to provide the communication network between central banks participating in the Target (Trans-European Automated Real-Time Gross Settlement Express Transfer) system. Target will use Swift's core Fin message processing system and network.