MarketAxess showed a substantial improvement in July, marked by a 24% rise in total trading volume. This growth was fueled by impressive increases in US high-grade and Eurobonds. The electronic trading platform achieved record numbers in portfolio trading, crediting this success to its initiatives and the potential for future market share growth.
Fixed-Income Securities of MarketAxess
MarketAxess reported a total average daily volume (ADV) of $35.1 billion, a 24.1% increase from the previous year. This rise stemmed from a 12.3% growth in total credit ADV, hitting $12.8 billion, and a 32% uptick in total rates ADV.
Regarding the performance, Chris Concannon, MarketAxess’ CEO, mentioned that in July, they achieved a 12% growth in total credit ADV. This was led by an 18% increase in US high-grade, Eurobonds, a 7% rise in emerging markets, and a remarkable 65% surge in municipal bonds with a record estimated market share. They are confident that their strategy, which involves expanding their portfolio trading options and dealer solutions, will further boost their market share in US credit.
In the US credit market, MarketAxess noted notable increases in high-grade bonds, achieving an average daily volume (ADV) of $6.1 billion, reflecting a 17.9% rise. However, the estimated market share for US high-grade bonds slightly decreased to 18.6% from the previous year’s 19.9%. On the other hand, US high-yield bonds saw a 17.7% decrease in ADV, amounting to $1.1 billion, leading to a decline in market share to 12.5%.
Contribution of Emerging Markets
Emerging markets showed a positive impact, with a 7.1% rise in ADV to $3.2 billion, driven by growth in LATAM, EMEA, and APAC regions. Eurobonds ADV surged by 17.8% to $1.8 billion, reflecting demand for these securities. Municipal bonds saw a significant 65.2% increase in ADV to $575 million, capturing an estimated market share of 8.6%.
MarketAxess observed a substantial boost in portfolio trading ADV, reaching $972 million, up by 178.5% since July 2023 and 11.9% from June 2024. Wealth management and private banking clients experienced an 11.8% uptick in ADV to $116 million. Dealer RFQ ADV for all credit products rose by 9.5%. The initial variable transaction fees per million (FPM) for total credit in July 2024 stood at around $143, down from $160 the previous year.
This decrease was influenced by changes in protocols and product mix, particularly increased portfolio trading and reduced US high-yield activity. For total rates, the preliminary FPM was approximately $3.99, compared to $4.63 in the previous year.