Trading in some of the OTC derivatives widely blamed for aggravating the financial crisis is likely to surge if legislators press ahead with proposed reforms, according to Icap, the world’s largest interdealer broker. Michael Spencer, chief executive, said on Tuesday that along with a rise in electronic trading, the introduction of clearing would expand the market for instruments such as credit default swaps – mirroring the effect that the arrival of electronic trading had on futures and other asset classes.

