CHICAGO (Reuters) - CME Group Inc, the biggest operator of U.S. futures exchanges, said it was "exploring the concept" of having clearinghouses or other depositories keep all customer money used to trade futures, after the collapse of two brokerages left customers with as much as $1.8 billion in losses.
The move would fundamentally change the U.S. futures brokerage business, in which brokers traditionally hold most of the money that customers put up to back their futures trades.
Any interest earned on customer funds would be returned to the brokerages, CME said in a statement on Monday.
The bankruptcies of MF Global Inc in October and Peregrine Financial Group this month left customers with a shortfall in their accounts of as much as $1.8 billion, regulators have said.
(Reporting by Ann Saphir; Editing by Maureen Bavdek)
