The Irish Stock Exchange is a key element of the financial infrastructure of Ireland. Its roots stretch back to 1793 when the Exchange first opened for trading in Dublin.

As a regulated Stock Exchange, the Exchange complies with the requirements of European Directives, including the Prospectus Directive and Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), in relation to securities listed and admitted to trading on the Main Market of the Exchange. These securities comprise equities, corporate bonds, government bonds, investment funds, exchange traded funds and specialist securities. In addition, the Exchange has developed standards of the highest quality for securities admitted to trading on the Irish Enterprise Exchange and the Alternative Securities Market.

Trading on the Exchange is primarily conducted in the equities and government bond markets on the ISE/Xetra® trading platform and EuroMTS platform respectively. The highest regulatory standards apply to participation in the Exchange's markets to ensure the protection of investors and the integrity of the market.

Established in 1991 by the European central counterparty clearing houses, EACH is the central counterparties' voice in Europe. Its participants are senior executives specializing in clearing and risk management from European CCPs, representing both EU and non-EU. EACH has currently 19 members and is open to all entities incorporated in Europe.

Facing the fact, that clearing activities are increasingly not restricted exclusively to exchange-traded business, EACH has an interest in ensuring that the evolving global discussions on clearing and settlement are fully informed by the expertise and opinions of those responsible for providing central counterparty clearing services.

Its aims are to discuss and analyze technologies and developments as well as legal and regulatory issues related to central counterparty clearing. EACH develops frames of reference, publishes standards and acts as a forum for the development of the personal contacts necessary to build a constructive working relationship with other infrastructure and user associations.