MarketAxess Holdings (Nasdaq: MKTX), the operator of a leading electronic trading platform for U.S. and European high-grade corporate bonds, emerging markets bonds and other types of fixed-income securities, today announced two new dealer initiatives in response to institutional investor demand.
The Company has added 12 regional dealers to its market-making community, primarily to respond to investors' high-grade corporate bond inquiries in smaller trade sizes. MarketAxess has also added nine diversity dealers, who will now be able to compete for institutional investors' fixed-income order flow on the MarketAxess trading platform.
"In these difficult times for credit markets, investors are seeking alternative sources for market liquidity," said Kelley Millet, President of MarketAxess. "We are pleased to deliver the expanded dealer community to bring additional liquidity for odd-lots, one of the hardest hit areas for efficient and cost-effective trade execution. With this initiative, we believe we can increase market share in smaller trade sizes and improve the overall investor experience on the trading system."
The new dealers include independent broker-dealer firms, as well as dealer subsidiaries of regional banks. The MarketAxess dealer community now totals more than 50 dealers, up from 31 as of June 30, 2008, with more regional and diversity dealers expected to join.