This new platform will boost transparency and liquidity as well as increase efficiency in bond trading. The launch is in line with the Exchange's ongoing commitment to further improve market accessibility and increase trading efficiencies via infrastructure enhancement initiatives.

This new platform, which is developed and customised based on the Korea Exchange's bond trading system, allows dealers to easily match bids with offers, negotiate deals and access historical data through a common computerised network. By using world-class technology, ETP immediately puts Bursa Malaysia in the forefront of electronic bond trading in the ASEAN region. ETP, seamlessly offers investors a real-time price quotation, allowing financial institutions and money brokers to benefit from transparent dealing.

Dato' Yusli Mohamed Yusoff, Chief Executive Officer of Bursa Malaysia said, "The implementation of this internationally accepted system certainly augments our capabilities as a dynamic market operator. Essentially, the price discovery mechanism will help improve liquidity in the secondary market as the price dissemination process is made transparent, which in turn boosts trade volumes. Bond market dealers will be able to place their orders directly to the exchange through ETP and we expect more bond trades to be transferred from the over-the-counter market to ETP."

"In addition, Bursa Malaysia will waive the transaction fee for all market participants until 30 June 2008," Dato' continued.

With ETP, Bursa Malaysia targets to capture 5% of the daily bond trading volume in its first year of operations. ETP's enhanced reporting and trading system will complement Bank Negara Malaysia's (BNM) operations of settlement and depository of bonds. This new platform replaces the Bond Information Dissemination System which was operated by BNM. ETP will run concurrently with the over-the-counter model employed currently in the bond market. All financial institutions and money brokerrs will be participating on ETP.