MarketAxess posted a significant improvement in July, with a notable 24% increase in total trading volume, driven by remarkable growth in US high-grade and Eurobonds. The electronic trading platform reported record figures in portfolio trading, attributing the performance to some of its initiatives and the potential for future market share expansion.

Fixed-Income Securities

MarketAxess announced a total average daily volume (ADV) of $35.1 billion, up by 24.1% from the previous year. This surge was driven by a 12.3% growth in total credit ADV, reaching $12.8 billion, and a 32% increase in total rates ADV.

Commenting about the performance, Chris Concannon, the CEO of MarketAxess, said: "In July, we delivered 12% growth in total credit ADV, driven by an 18% increase in US high-grade, an 18% increase in Eurobonds, a 7% increase in emerging markets, and a 65% increase in municipal bonds on record estimated market share. We believe that our strategy, including the expansion of our portfolio trading offering and dealer solutions, will drive future market share expansion in US credit."

In the US credit market, MarketAxess reported significant gains in high-grade bonds, with an ADV of $6.1 billion, marking a 17.9% increase. Despite this growth, the estimated market share for US high-grade slightly declined to 18.6% from 19.9% the previous year. US high-yield bonds experienced a 17.7% drop in ADV, totaling $1.1 billion, with market share dipping to 12.5%.

Emerging Markets

Emerging markets also contributed positively, with a 7.1% rise in ADV to $3.2 billion, bolstered by growth across LATAM, EMEA, and APAC regions. Eurobonds ADV increased by 17.8%, reaching $1.8 billion, reportedly showcasing a demand for these securities.

Municipal bonds posted a 65.2% in ADV to $575 million, achieving an estimated market share of 8.6%. Additionally, MarketAxess recorded a substantial increase in portfolio trading ADV, hitting $972 million, up 178.5% from July 2023 and 11.9% from June 2024.

Wealth management and private banking clients experienced an 11.8% increase in ADV to $116 million. Dealer RFQ ADV across all credit products rose by 9.5%. The preliminary variable transaction fees per million (FPM) for total credit in July 2024 were approximately $143, down from $160 in the previous year.

This decline resulted from a shift in protocol and product mix, notably increased portfolio trading and reduced US high-yield activity. For total rates, the preliminary FPM was around $3.99, compared to $4.63 last year.