Sweden's innovative Options Market (later OM Group, and today part of OMHex) is one of the world's great near misses. Among the ideas it pioneered is the clearing and settlement of over-the-counter derivatives transactions — an idea far ahead of its time back in the early 1990s when it was championed by Per Larson, but one that has now come into its own, thanks in large part to the efforts of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA). The dual processes of standardization (largely in the form of ISDA swap agreements) and technology (largely in the form of ISDA's fpml protocol) have brought the idea within reach. "It used to be like herding cats to get this thing going," says ISDA policy director Julian Day. "Now it's like herding sheep."
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