Data provider Markit Group has postponed the launch of a series of credit indexes tied to bonds backed by sub-prime mortgages, after issuance of derivatives based on the securities slowed to a trickle in the wake of the credit crunch.

The Markit ABX.HE is a family of five sub-indexes, which each consist of a basket of credit default swaps referencing 20 different US sub-prime residential equity securities. T