Bank-backed equity trading venue Turquoise is set to launch a liquidity aggregation and order routing service after getting the go-ahead from the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
Turquoise says TQ Channel, set to launch in early July, will provide a single point of access to non-displayed liquidity from major trading firms, allowing clients to take advantage of otherwise inaccessible liquidity in over 1700 securities in 15 European markets.
The platform says its independent, centralised infrastructure offers a meeting point for otherwise fragmented liquidity and a place where institutional size trades will execute securely.
In addition, counterparty risk is mitigated through a fully cleared offering, with settlement through EuroCCP's facility, netting with all other Turquoise trades.
The move will help Turquoise broaden its revenue base as it fights for business in the crowded post-MiFID environment which is seeing competing platforms slash fees to gain market share. In March the facility saw dealing volumes slump after liquidity agreements with market-makers expired.
Eli Lederman, chief executive, Turquoise, says: "Institutional investors will benefit from the efficiency of high cross rates for large and less liquid orders, while obtaining price improvement and minimising information leakage."