Finance titans face off over US$5t London gold market

London

SOME of the biggest names in finance are fighting for control of the London gold market - a US$5 trillion, three-century-old trading hub that is being forced to adapt to a digital age.

As the London Bullion Market Association revamps over-the-counter trades that are the market's major pricing benchmark, new ways of buying and selling precious metals are set to start next year from CME Group, Intercontinental Exchange and the London Metal Exchange. Some big banks have stakes in the outcome, including Goldman Sachs Group, HSBC Holdings and JPMorgan Chase and Co.