Lee Hodgkinson, CEO of UK-based exchange SWX Europe, head of the client and product management division and member of the management committee at SIX Swiss Exchange, SWX’s parent firm, is to leave the organisation at the end of April to pursue a new challenge.
Hodgkinson will remain in charge of his areas of responsibility until his final day with SIX Swiss Exchange. Hodgkinson’s departure follows SIX Swiss Exchange’s decision, announced last November, to close SWX Europe and transfer trading of Swiss blue-chip stocks from London back to Zurich. One of Hodgkinson’s roles was to head up the transfer project, which will be finalised by the end of June.
SIX launched SWX Europe, originally known as virt-x, in 2001. It wanted to trade Swiss blue-chip stocks in London because it felt Switzerland’s stamp duty rules at the time put the exchange at a competitive advantage to other European exchanges.