Any such drop in the number of players reduces market liquidity, which can in turn lead to even more volatility and sharper spikes in prices that can hurt even major players. Since late August, European Union governments have stepped in to help utilities such as Germany's Uniper. However, with winter price spikes lying ahead, there is no indication of whether or how quickly governments and the EU can back banks or other utilities that need to hedge their trades. Exchanges, clearing houses and brokers have raised initial margin requirements to 100%-150% of contract value from 10-15%, senior bankers and traders said, making hedging too costly for many. The ICE exchange is, for example, charging margin rates of up to 79% on Dutch TTF gas futures. Futures/margin-rates: Although market participants say that fast disappearing liquidity could severely reduce trading in fuels such as oil, gas and coal and lead to supply disruptions and bankruptcies, regulators still say the risk is small.