AxeTrading, a provider of fixed income trading technology, has announced a strategic investment of €2 million from Illuminate Financial Management, a venture capital firm backed by Deutsche Börse Group and IHS Markit amongst others, with a specific focus on capital markets financial technology.
Through its solution AxeTrader, the firm provides banks, broker-dealers and buy-side firms with a picture of fixed income liquidity including axes, runs and quotes – sourced across electronic venues, messaging platforms and voice channels. The firm also provides clients with tools to support best execution and regulatory reporting, including MiFID II.
The strategic investment will enable AxeTrading to continue to expand its global client base for fixed income liquidity aggregation – as concern over market fragmentation continues to rise. According to a 2016 Greenwich Associates Survey of more than 400 credit investors in the US and Europe in 2016, over 80% felt that reduced market liquidity is impacting their ability to implement their investment strategy.
The capital injection will also bolster AxeTrading’s buy-side offering at a time when buy-side requirements in fixed income markets are growing significantly. A recent State Street poll of asset managers found that 49% agreed that the role of non-bank institutions as providers of liquidity will continue to grow – highlighting the need among these institutions for more advanced trading technology solutions.
