MarketAxess is set to acquire multi-asset algorithmic trading provider, Pragma, for an undisclosed sum at the end of this year, subject to closing conditions.
Pragma offers algorithmic trading and analytical services across equities, foreign exchange and fixed income. Its clients include asset managers, hedge funds, broker dealers, banks and exchanges.
The platform’s algorithmic trading platform claims to have handled over $2 trillion of client algorithmic order flow in various asset classes across 50 venues last year.
“Our acquisition of Pragma underscores MarketAxess’ commitment to innovating, integrating, and providing our clients with quantitative, AI-powered technology solutions powered by proprietary data designed to simplify and enhance their workflows,” said Chris Concannon, chief executive officer of MarketAxess.
“In addition to accelerating our leadership in the fixed-income automation and algo space, Pragma’s years of expertise with FX algos provides a unique opportunity for FX hedging solutions for our emerging market clients.”
The deal follows the first algorithmic client trades taking place on Adaptive Auto-X – MarketAxess’ multi-protocol automated execution solution – in June.
Read more – MarketAxess executes first client algo trade using automated execution solution Adaptive Auto-X
The Adaptive Auto-X pilot was launched earlier this year with the aim to make plugging into fragmented liquidity pools easier for users by taking MarketAxess’ liquidity pools and placing them alongside its data and analytics offering, allowing for more complex automated workflows to be set up.
“Pragma and MarketAxess share a common mission of using technology and automation to improve trader efficiency and generate superior trading outcomes for investors,” said David Mechner, Pragma’s founder and chief executive officer.
MarketAxess’ scale and resources will amplify the results we can deliver for clients with the cutting edge technologies we’ve built – both for our existing clients in equities and FX, and for MarketAxess’ large client network as we continue developing new solutions in fixed-income.”