CLS Group (CLS), the market infrastructure that enhances financial stability by providing risk mitigation services to the global FX market, and Traiana, the leading provider of post-trade and risk solutions, announced today that Mizuho Corporate Bank, Ltd. (Mizuho) has joined CLS Aggregation Services LLC (CLSAS).
CLSAS provides trade compression services to participants active in the over-the-counter FX market, helping reduce post-trade operational risk.
Mizuho joins a group of nine banks which includes BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Citibank, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, and Royal Bank of Scotland.
CLSAS offers a range of benefits for participants including reduced market and operational risk, streamlined processing and standardized post-trade and pre-settlement delivery. Since its launch, CLSAS has seen steady growth, with average daily volumes rising 45% to 440,000 in the first quarter of 2013 from 304,000 in the first quarter of 2012.
David Puth, CEO of CLS, said: "This is another significant milestone for CLS Aggregation Services as we welcome Mizuho as a participant. We have seen strong growth in volumes for the service over the past year, highlighting the role it plays in both reducing risk and further strengthening the FX market's global infrastructure."
Andrew Coyne, CEO, Traiana said: "We are delighted to welcome Mizuho to CLSAS. In the two years since its launch, CLSAS has been instrumental in reducing operational risk and helping to unlock capacity for its users, supporting their own business growth. With Mizuho on board as the first Asian bank, the service is expanding its global reach"
Mr. Nakano, ExecutiveOfficer and General Manager of the Forex Division, Mizuho added: "I am pleased that Mizuho has joined CLS Aggregation Services as the first participant from Asia. The trade compression service will help mitigate operational risk, providing us with resource and processing efficiencies."
CLSAS went live in January 2010 and works by compressing matched FX transactions to a single aggregate trade which is then processed for settlement by CLS.