Electronic bond trading up sharply in 2006, says Sifma survey

The take-up of electronic trading in global fixed income markets accelerated sharply in 2006, according to the annual Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association (Sifma) survey. The data, which was compiled from more than sixty operators of electronic trading systems for fixed-income securities in the US, Eur

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The take-up of electronic trading in global fixed income markets accelerated sharply in 2006, according to the annual Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association (Sifma) survey.

The data, which was compiled from more than sixty operators of electronic trading systems for fixed-income securities in the US, Europe, Asia, Australia and Canada, showed that 74% witnessed an increase in trading volume during the first three quarters of 2006, when compared to last year.

68% of respondents have seen transaction volumes grow more than 5% so far this year, while 47% reported increases of at least 10%t. 28% percent of those surveyed said volumes shot up by at least a fifth over the same period last year.

The survey suggests that automated processing links from execution to clearing and settlement are increasingly important, as the majority of platforms provide users with direct access to global clearing and settlement organisations such as DTCC, NSCC, GSCC, Euroclear, Clearstream and Bloomberg.

In addition to clearing and settlement, respondents also reported a trend for platforms to offer greater access to a variety of value added products such as compliance and analytical services.

‘Market participants are increasingly turning to electronic execution as trading platforms grow even more sophisticated,’ says Michael Decker, head of research and policy analysis at Sifma.