Liquidnet, has reported a record of US$6.8 billion in principal traded in Asia Pacific for the first quarter of 2015.
Liquidnet attributed the strong Asia Pacific performance to record volumes in Japan, while performance was strong in Australia as well. Average trade size in Liquidnet Australia was in excess of AU$1.8 million, an increase from AU$1.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2014, the firm reports. This is “around 390 times the Q1 average trade size in ASX Centre Point [ASX's dark pool] of AU$4,680, based on their Jan and Feb trade sizes,” Liquidnet said. Liquidnet also reported that 90% of the trades in Australia in the first quarter of 2015 qualified as “block” trades, as defined under the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) Market Integrity Rules.
The overall regional figure of US$6.8 billion principal traded represents a 50% increase on the previous quarter and 17% higher year-on-year. Average daily liquidity in Asia Pacific rose to US$12.2 billion in the first quarter, a 25% increase on the last quarter of 2014, Liquidnet reports.
“The first quarter was an excellent start to the year with the buy-side actively trading in large size across all 11 markets in the region,” says Lee Porter, head of Liquidnet Asia Pacific. Liquidnet has also seen its liquidity pool in Asia Pacific continue to rise in the quarter in both breadth and depth reflecting the strength of our global membership.”
Liquidnet notes that liquidity concerns continue to be an important consideration for buyside traders – more than 80% of buyside traders said sourcing liquidity in the market was a concern, according to Liquidnet’s Institutional Voice Survey, released last month.
“We are seeing the evolution of the buyside trader who today has more options to execute in a range of venues,” Porter says. “The ongoing challenge, however, is to source liquidity in size on platforms that they trust. Liquidnet’s ability to deliver large blocks of liquidity globally, across 43 markets to our 780 members, continues to drive record performance.”
Liquidnet is a global institutional trading network that offers fund managers and asset owners “maximum anonymity and minimum market impact.”