Thursday 28 Mar 2024
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SINGAPORE (Nov 27): The Singapore Exchange will launch a platform for trading Asian corporate bonds by the middle of next year.

The bourse operator has set up a new subsidiary, SGX Bond Trading, to drive the initiative, which it said will be the first of its kind focused on Asian credit and will target to become an "Asian liquidity centre" for high-yield and investment-grade bonds.

The bonds will initially trade in G3 currencies, with Asian currencies introduced subsequently.

SGX held an inaugural meeting with senior representatives of 32 Asian fixed-income dealers and investors this week to discuss the development of the trading platform.

It also appointed TradingScreen, an electronic trading solutions firm, as the technology platform provider.

“SGX believes that in the long term, the Asian fixed income markets are poised for strong growth, given the region’s growing infrastructure needs and investor demand for steady, long-term returns,” SGX CEO Magnus Bocker said in a statement.

“We believe that SGX’s entry will make the market significantly more efficient at a time when several players are cutting back on the scale of their participation in the fixed income markets," said Biswaroop Tapan Barua, Standard Chartered Bank's head of fixed income and credit products for group wealth management.

The initiative comes at a time of reduced securities trading on SGX.

Activity in the local stock market has fallen notably since the penny stock crash in October last year.

The recent launch of the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect programme may have also drawn some investors away from the Singapore market.

SGX shares rose 1.2% to $7.32 yesterday.

 

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