Any solution to the administration of the London Bullion Market Association Silver Price would have to be far removed from the one left behind by CME and Thomson Reuters, with central clearing essential, market participants said this week.

Last Friday CME and Thomson Reuters said they were stepping away from the calculation and administration of the settlement, following a review of the benchmark.

CME and Thomson Reuters have been operating/administering the LBMA Silver Price since 2014.

Speaking to S&P Global Platts ahead of the official release, sources close to the situation said CME and Reuters opted to give up their respective duties of the price management due to internal differences.

The LBMA will shortly be launching a new tendering process to identify an alternative provider to operate and administer the auction process.