Just as some more mature readers were getting their heads round programming video recorders, they will have found that the world has moved on to DVDs. Those who have just replaced their record collection with compact discs will be dismayed by the advent of iPods. And just as regulators in Europe have finally decided to look into the arcane, but important, question of clearing and settlement, they may also find they have been left behind.

Three different European bodies are examining the issues, each analysing and debating essentially the same matters with identical market participants contributing to the effort. The UK's Competition Commission, whose main concerns over any exchange merger relate to clearing, last week extended its inquiry into the potential takeover of the London Stock Exchange by a further eight weeks to November.