NEW YORK, May 28, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:MKTX), the operator of a leading electronic trading platform for fixed income securities and provider of market data and post-trade services for the global fixed-income markets, and BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) today announced the launch of iShares fixed income exchange traded fund (ETF) information and basket trading technology on MarketAxess.
The consolidated iShares content on the MarketAxess trading system now enables ETF market makers to efficiently trade baskets of iShares ETF constituent bonds using MarketAxess' patented list trading functionality. Bid and Offer Wanted lists can also be sent via Market Lists, MarketAxess' flagship Open Trading protocol, to access the broadest all-to-all liquidity pool of over 1,000 institutional investor and broker-dealer firms.
"Traditional institutional investors are increasingly adopting ETFs for a variety of portfolio management strategies. Traders now have an efficient way to manage their iShares holdings. By streamlining the creation of bid/offer wanted lists of ETF constituent bonds within MarketAxess, traders can efficiently source pricing from multiple counterparties. ETF market makers can also view ETF trading activity for greater insight into actively traded bonds, thereby improving pre-trade price information," says Richard Schiffman, Open Trading Product Manager at MarketAxess.
"We're pleased to announce this partnership with MarketAxess so that authorized participants and ETF market makers can efficiently trade baskets of iShares ETF constituent bonds. This will ultimately help institutional investors add fixed income ETFs to their investment portfolios," commented Patrick Dunne, Head of iShares Global Markets & Investments at BlackRock.
iShares ETF Page Features:
- View end of day iShares ETF fund holdings and related information across corporate bond ETFs and other fixed income funds, such as Treasuries, municipal, mortgages, etc.
- Electronically trade bonds on MarketAxess from iShares' investment grade, high yield and select emerging market exchange traded funds
- Send inquiries via Market Lists to MarketAxess' all-to-all liquidity pool, maximizing trade opportunities
- List trading for constituent bonds with flexibility to trade all or part of the basket, improving efficiency for the create/redeem process
- Trade sizes for each constituent dynamically change when the basket unit count is adjusted
BlackRock and MarketAxess have executed a Letter of Intent and commencement of operations is subject to finalization of a definitive agreement, which the parties expect to complete within the next several weeks.
About MarketAxess
MarketAxess operates a leading electronic trading platform that enables fixed-income market participants to efficiently trade corporate bonds and other types of fixed-income instruments using MarketAxess' patented trading technology. Over 1,000 institutional investor and broker-dealer firms are active users of the MarketAxess trading platform, accessing global liquidity in U.S. high-grade corporate bonds, emerging markets and high-yield bonds, European bonds, U.S. agency bonds, credit default swaps and other fixed-income securities. MarketAxess SEF Corporation has received temporary registration from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to operate a swap execution facility. MarketAxess also offers a number of trading-related products and services, including: market data to assist clients with trading decisions; connectivity solutions that facilitate straight-through-processing; technology services to optimize trading environments; and execution services for exchange-traded fund managers and other clients. Through its Trax® division, MarketAxess also offers a range of pre- and post-trade services, including trade matching, regulatory transaction reporting and market and reference data, across a range of fixed-income products. Trax is the trading name of Xtrakter Ltd., a MarketAxess group company.
MarketAxess maintains its headquarters in New York and has offices in London, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, São Paulo and Singapore. For more information, please visit www.marketaxess.com.
About BlackRock
BlackRock is a leader in investment management, risk management and advisory services for institutional and retail clients worldwide. At March 31, 2014, BlackRock's AUM was $4.401 trillion. BlackRock helps clients meet their goals and overcome challenges with a range of products that include separate accounts, mutual funds, iShares® (exchange-traded funds), and other pooled investment vehicles. BlackRock also offers risk management, advisory and enterprise investment system services to a broad base of institutional investors through BlackRock Solutions®. Headquartered in New York City, as of March 31, 2014, the firm had approximately 11,500 employees in more than 30 countries and a major presence in key global markets, including North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East and Africa. For additional information, please visit the Company's website at www.blackrock.com.
About iShares
iShares is a global product leader in exchange traded funds with over 600 funds globally across equities, fixed income and commodities, which trade on 20 exchanges worldwide. The iShares Funds are bought and sold like common stocks on securities exchanges. The iShares Funds are attractive to many individual and institutional investors and financial intermediaries because of their relative low cost and trading flexibility. Investors can purchase and sell shares through any brokerage firm, financial advisor, or online broker, and hold the funds in any type of brokerage account. The iShares customer base consists of the institutional segment of pension plans and fund managers, as well as the retail segment of financial advisors and high net worth individuals.
iShares® and BlackRock® are registered trademarks of BlackRock, Inc. and its affiliates ("BlackRock") and are used under license. BlackRock makes no representations or warranties regarding the advisability of investing in any product or service offered by MarketAxess Holdings Inc. BlackRock has no obligation or liability in connection with the operation, marketing, trading or sale of any product or service offered by MarketAxess Holdings Inc.