Nodal Exchange, which grew its North American power trading volumes 97%
in 2016, has become a significant part of the North American power
market with over 28% market share of open interest as of September 30,
2017.
TransRisk, Inc., Nodal Exchange, LLC and DAT Solutions, LLC are pleased
to announce that they have entered into an agreement to work together to
market, develop, and list the first and only trucking freight futures
and options on futures contracts. The contracts are planned to be listed
for trading on Nodal Exchange in late 2018 and will be financially
settled using the DAT Truckload Rate Index, based on DAT's data for
major freight lanes in the U.S., subject to regulatory approval.
TransRisk is focused on addressing volatility in line haul freight
rates, where spot prices can swing as much as 40% in a single week on
certain major lanes. Volatility of truck capacity can be driven by a
host of market conditions such as weather, seasonality, regulations and
macroeconomics. Brokers, carriers, and shippers all face the same
challenges when it comes to volatile spot rates and are exposed to
market conditions without viable hedging alternatives to manage price
risk. These new contracts will provide participants much needed risk
management tools to hedge their freight lane exposure.
"DAT and Nodal Exchange are ideal TransRisk partners to launch the first
futures contracts for the trucking industry. DAT is considered the de
facto industry standard, well established for its benchmark supply,
demand and rate data for the truckload freight market," said Craig
Fuller, CEO of TransRisk. "Nodal Exchange grew from a cold-start
exchange a decade ago to quickly become one of the largest players in
the power markets. This entrepreneurial achievement is a testament to
the quality of the exchange, clearinghouse, and culture of the firm. We
were highly selective in picking an exchange and clearing partner and
wanted a firm that understood how to build a futures contract in a new
market and had the internal resources to execute. We couldn't have found
a better partner," Fuller added.
Nodal Exchange is a regulated derivatives exchange which currently
offers over 1,000 electric power and natural gas contracts on hundreds
of unique locations allowing market participants to hedge against price
risks in the United States. All of the transactions on Nodal Exchange
are cleared through its clearinghouse, Nodal Clear, a derivatives
clearing organization under the Commodity Exchange Act that is regulated
by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Nodal Clear's
strong risk management practices create a sound market infrastructure
for trading Nodal Exchange contracts.
"Nodal Exchange is very happy to apply its risk management expertise
toward expansion into new commodity markets including the trucking
freight market," said Paul Cusenza, Chairman and CEO of Nodal Exchange
and Nodal Clear. "TransRisk and DAT are strong collaborators with
extensive experience in the trucking marketplace. We look forward to
working with them to design and list products that will effectively
serve these markets."
Established in 1978, the DAT on-demand freight exchange is the largest
and most comprehensive, with a projected 177 million loads and trucks
posted in its marketplace in 2017, and with robust spot and contract
lane pricing data from actual freight transactions valued at $33 billion
annually. Brokers, 3PLs (third-party logistics providers), shippers and
carriers rely on DAT's historic and real-time price data as an industry
benchmark.
"The recent hurricanes, on top of economic growth and abundant
agricultural harvests led to nationwide supply chain disruption and
caused dramatic market price fluctuation," said Claude Pumilia,
President of DAT Solutions. "DAT was able to provide timely and relevant
business intelligence to trucking and logistics companies to help them
succeed during volatile market conditions. The trucking freight futures
contracts under development with TransRisk and Nodal Exchange will
provide a broader risk mitigation solution for industry participants and
investors, and are long overdue," Pumilia said.
TransRisk is a data intelligence and financial products company serving
the freight industry. Founded in 2016 by seasoned trucking executive and
entrepreneur Craig Fuller, the company's products include a robust data
platform capable of providing unique and predictive insights into the
trucking industry and the ability to trade trucking futures contracts
that will soon be listed on Nodal Exchange. In addition to its core
focus areas, the company is also the founder of the Blockchain in
Trucking Alliance, a consortium of technology enterprises,
manufacturers, carriers, and logistics technology organizations
committed to implementing blockchain technology in trucking. More
information is available at www.transrisk.com
Nodal Exchange is a derivatives exchange providing price, credit and
liquidity risk management solutions to participants in the North
American energy markets. Nodal Exchange is a leader in innovation,
having introduced the world's largest set of electric power locational
(nodal) futures contracts. Nodal Exchange currently offers over 1,000
contracts on hundreds of unique locations, providing the most effective
basis risk management available to market participants. In addition,
Nodal Exchange offers a Henry Hub natural gas contract providing
cross-margining benefits with participant's power portfolios. All Nodal
Exchange contracts are cleared by Nodal Clear which is a CFTC registered
derivatives clearing organization. Nodal Exchange is a designated
contract market regulated by the CFTC. Nodal Exchange is part of the EEX
Group. www.nodalexchange.com
DAT operates the largest spot freight marketplace in North America.
Transportation brokers, carriers, news organizations and industry
analysts rely on DAT for market trends and data insights derived from
177 million annual freight matches and a database of $33 billion of
market transactions. Related services include a comprehensive directory
of companies with business history, credit, safety, insurance and
company reviews; broker transportation management software; authority,
fuel tax, mileage, vehicle licensing, and registration services; and
carrier onboarding. Founded in 1978, DAT Solutions, LLC is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Roper Technologies (NYSE:ROP), a diversified
technology company and constituent of the S&P 500, Fortune 1000 and
Russell 1000 indices. www.DAT.com