Octaura has integrated list and request for quote (RFQ) protocols on its existing syndicated loan trading platform, in an effort to offer clients faster trade execution and enhanced price transparency supporting straight-through processing, while streamlining trading workflows for dealers and buy side investors.
Buy-side loan traders can initiate an RFQ by simultaneously submitting price requests to multiple dealers, receive live executable bids/offers and transact at the best level with the dealer of their choice. Once a single line item or list is loaded to the platform, investors should be able to view the depth and bid/offer stack, understand which dealers are axed to trade and factor Octaura’s liquidity score into their investment decision. Dealers potentially benefit from an increase in trade flow with their axes highlighted to the buy side, alongside additional pricing colour.
Octaura CEO Brian Bejile said, “Octaura, at its core, is about facilitating access to, and creating efficiencies in, our markets. The integration of List and RFQ protocols enables our clients to execute faster and make more effective investment decisions through our seamless electronic trading solution. Octaura’s agile technology ensures liquidity providers and liquidity takers experience a straightforward and user-friendly process on our platform.”
The List protocol leverages pre-trade analytics that inform investors of dealer liquidity and historical loan performance. The protocol enables traders to send the portfolio of loans to multiple market makers for pricing and receive multiple prices on every line-item in near real-time and allows for processing for up to 500 line items with calculations managed through the platform across all dealers in competition.
Octaura claims 78 buy side firms and 10 dealers have onboarded to electronic loan trading platform, which it launched earlier this year, and claims a 64% increase in trade volume from the prior quarter.
Citi’s head of loan portfolio trading, Tim Maloney, said, “Octaura continues to be a growing component in our loan trading workflow. Octaura’s combined RFQ and Lists offering delivers significant efficiencies, for both the buy and sell side. The pre-trade analytics and post-trade straight-through processing help us make more informed decisions quickly and effectively.”
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