Custom Basket Futures & Forwards
Global Equity Exposure Made Simple
Providing investors with tailored exposure to global equities as well as security of multilateral trading and central counterparty clearing on Nasdaq Nordic.
We're excited to announce the expansion of our offering with the addition of 2,000 US stocks to the stock universe, providing clients with even more flexibility in shaping their trading strategies. More than 4,000 European and U.S. stocks are now available for investors to customize their equity baskets.
This expansion is a direct result of the foundational year we established for Custom Basket Futures in 2025, with the launch of the futures in Q1, the onboarding of the first client in Q2 and a second one in Q4 - resulting in over 7,8 million contracts traded across 4 custom baskets.
Nasdaq Custom Basket Futures and Forwards are innovative derivative products addressing the rising demand for a simpler and more efficient way of handling tailored equity exposures.
For firms struggling with the increasing challenges associated with OTC equity swaps, Nasdaq Custom Basket derivatives offer a cost-efficient alternative, combining bespoke elements with the benefits of central counterparty clearing and trading on a regulated market.
Download factsheet
Define your equity basket by currency and return type such as gross, net and price.
Select your composition by defining the individual stocks and weights from a broad global stock universe.
A cash-settled futures or forward contract is issued in Nasdaq's trading and clearing systems.
You're now able to transact the custom basket in a single instrument in one transaction.
Traditional equity benchmarks remain efficient, but they no longer align with how modern portfolios are constructed. Cap‑weighted indices increasingly embed unintended concentration, regional bias, and style drift, forcing asset managers to manage outcomes after taking exposure.
Custom baskets - often powered by QIS - reverse this logic. They allow managers to design exposure first, then implement it efficiently. Nasdaq Custom Basket Futures bring this design flexibility into a listed, liquid, and capital‑efficient futures format, enabling scalable implementation without structural complexity.
Traditional equity benchmarks remain efficient, but they no longer align with how modern portfolios are constructed. Cap‑weighted indices increasingly embed unintended concentration, regional bias, and style drift, forcing asset managers to manage outcomes after taking exposure.
Custom baskets - often powered by QIS - reverse this logic. They allow managers to design exposure first, then implement it efficiently. Nasdaq Custom Basket Futures bring this design flexibility into a listed, liquid, and capital‑efficient futures format, enabling scalable implementation without structural complexity.
Custom Basket Futures allow asset managers to move from tracking indices to engineering exposure. Combined with QIS discipline and futures efficiency, they enable more precise, scalable, and intention‑driven portfolio construction.
Custom Basket Futures and Forwards allow investors to create a cash-settled futures or forward contract on a customized equity basket, combining tailored and bespoke elements with the benefits of CCP clearing and trading on a regulated market.
Custom Basket Futures and Forwards are for investors seeking tailored and cost-efficient equity exposures without bilateral risk, dependency in liquidity provision and entering/maintaining ISDA agreements. Nasdaq has developed Custom Basket Futures and Forwards to address an increasing demand for a simpler and more efficient way to handle equity exposures with standardized contracts on a regulated market.
For buy-side:
For firms who are finding equity swaps increasingly difficult due to the pressure of regulations and changes in the industry, Custom Basket Futures and Forwards offer a simple and cost-effective alternative, that gives them tailored equity exposure to a broad universe of stocks in a single contract, with the benefit of CCP clearing and trading on a regulated market.
For sell-side:
For banks who are looking for new ways to reach buy-side clients locked in ISDA agreements with other banks, clients who don’t want to trade swaps/bilateral, or clients who want more cost-efficient ways to create tailored equity exposure, Custom Basket Futures and Forwards offer a simpler and more efficient way to handle equity exposures with standardized contracts on a regulated market.
Exchange and Clearing members of Nasdaq Stockholm AB can submit basket requests following the signing of a license agreement and subject to the Exchange Rules and Clearing Rules of Nasdaq Derivatives Markets.
The following elements can be customized:
The referenced derivatives are traded and cleared in the same currency as the defined base currency of the basket.
Don't see your question here? Get in touch.
University of Cambridge Investment Management became the first to trade Nasdaq Custom Basket Futures with a notional value of €80 million.
Hear from Sarah Wood, Associate Director of Marketable Assets at UCIM as she shares how they decided to exclude conventional energy, supporting a core part of UCIM’s sustainable investment strategy.
Watch this short interview where Alessandro Romani, VP, Head of European Equity Derivatives at Nasdaq, talks about the benefits and use cases for Nasdaq Custom Basket Forwards.
Contact us to learn more about Nasdaq Custom Basket Futures and Forwards.
We've received your information.
Someone from our team will contact you soon.