NYSE Euronext said this morning that industry luminary Alan Whiting has been appointed as chairman of its derivatives business Liffe, which is gearing up for new rules that will change the way derivatives are traded globally.

Whiting, a long-time UK civil servant, regulation expert and a non-executive director to the NYSE Liffe board since 2006, will succeed Hugh Freedberg, who served as chief executive of Liffe from 1998 until 2009 before moving into the chairman's role. Garry Jones presently serves as chief executive of NYSE's global derivatives business.