Bloomberg TSOX drives MTS BondsPro to record buy-side volumes

LSE’s MTS BondsPro platform has seen record buy-side activity in 2017.

The London Stock Exchange’s (LSE) MTS BondsPro trading platform has seen buy-side trading activity almost triple in 2017, compared to the same period the year prior.

The exchange operator said the growth was a result of MTS and Bloomberg’s partnership which allowed corporate bonds in the BondsPro liquidity pool to be traded directly from the Bloomberg TSOX terminal.

LSE said over 60 new buy-side traders gained access to MTS BondsPro due to this initiative, which was announced at the Fixed Income Leaders Summit last year.

Over 800 traders executed on the MTS platform in 2016 and in February this year, the platform recorded its highest overall weekly trading volume since its acquisition in 2014.

David Parker, head of US sales at MTS Markets, explained the all-to-all model connects a community of buy-side and sell-side participants, “allowing them to act as either price maker or price taker and significantly enhance trading opportunities.”

The technology for MTS was upgraded for MiFID II compliance and improved data services earlier this month. The upgrade included support for transparency and waivers compliance, reporting, data and trading venue and microstructure requirements.

LSE recently refused to sell the MTS business to settle concerns over its potential merger with Deutsche Boerse.

The European Commission raised issues over bond and repo trading feeds provided through MTS and urged the LSE to sell its majority stake in the business to settle concerns.

“LSE regards the required MTS remedy as disproportionate,” the exchange operator said and highlighted its importance in the role of trading Italian government bonds.

The Group also said any change of control of MTS would require complex regulatory approval and therefore “it is highly unlikely that a sale of MTS could be satisfactorily achieved, even if LSE were to give the commitment.”

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