Buy-side dark crossing network Liquidnet’s total principal traded in Europe in Q2 2009 was £13.38 billion, a 30% increase over Q1 and a 21% year-on-year rise. The figure equates to an average daily principal traded of £219.3 million.
“We are delighted with these figures. They clearly show that European institutional investors have a healthy and increasing appetite for block-sized execution and execution quality,” said John Barker, managing director of Liquidnet Europe, in a statement.
Liquidnet Europe’s announcement closely follows fellow European dark pool NYFIX Euro Millennium’s news that its average daily matched value had increased 70% to €82 million in May, from nearly €48 million in December 2008.
According to monthly market share figures from Thomson Reuters, Liquidnet’s pan-European turnover was €1.4 billion in May 2009, up from €1.2 billion in April 2009 and €1.1 billion in May 2008.
Liquidnet is Europe’s largest non-displayed MTF by share of turnover. It commands 0.1% of all European trading, compared with NYFIX’s 0.06% and ITG POSIT’s 0.03%.
Liquidnet Europe is a subsidiary of US crossing network Liquidnet, which was launched in 2001. The firm now trades in 29 equity markets across five continents.