Asia Awards 2026: Best trading network—Liquidnet

Overview

Liquidnet connects over 1,000 institutional investors across 57 markets globally. Its technology-driven network is designed to enhance market efficiency by adding participants and providing trusted access to trading opportunities. Proprietary tools like Targeted Invitations, VWAP Cross, Surge Capture, and SuperBlock, developed in consultation with the firm’s clients, deliver actionable intelligence and insights. These services support efficient, secure, and transparent trading, addressing buy-side firms’ various trading needs by sourcing latent liquidity, capitalizing on volume surges, and safeguarding against price moves.

The solution  

Founded in 1999, Liquidnet is a technology-driven trading network that addresses the challenge of accessing global liquidity for buy-side firms through a suite of proprietary tools. Targeted Invitations source latent liquidity, VWAP Cross allows block orders to cross at full day VWAP prices, Surge Capture capitalizes on volume surges in the wake of block trades, and SuperBlock converts large opportunities into trades. These solutions are designed to ensure efficient, secure and transparent trading for the firm’s buy-side clients.

Secret sauce  

Liquidnet’s buy-side focus drives continuous evolution of its network, investing in tailored liquidity solutions. By focusing on the buy side’s needs, Liquidnet develops a range of products and services, ensuring access to global liquidity from over 1,000 client desktops. This client-aligned approach underpins a peer-to-peer network designed specifically for buy-side firms, enhancing their trading experience and meeting their specific requirements.

Recent milestones

Liquidnet has expanded its solutions into new markets, including Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines, increasing global accessibility. Since launch, $1 billion has been traded via VWAP Benchmark Cross across 70 unique clients spanning all regions, with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations markets contributing close to $100 million in trading. Liquidnet has enhanced its offerings with features based on user feedback and has established a continuous improvement program to ensure its services evolve to meet the market’s changing needs.

Future objectives

• Member-led innovation: Liquidnet will continue to evolve its platform through collaborative innovation, ensuring it meets the market’s dynamic needs.
• Expand global reach: Liquidnet will increase its network of institutional investors and market coverage to provide broader access to liquidity.
• Advanced Solutions: Liquidnet will continue its investment in new technologies and proprietary solutions to further improve trading efficiency, security and transparency across its network.

Why they won

Liquidnet has a long and impressive track record in WatersTechnology’s awards, having won categories consistently over the last 20 years. Its success in this year’s Asia Awards is thanks to its Liquidnet trading and execution network connecting over 1,000 institutional investors across 57 markets globally, allowing efficient, secure and transparent trading by sourcing latent liquidity, capitalizing on volume surges, and safeguarding against price moves. Accessing deep, reliable liquidity across fragmented markets remains a perennial challenge for the buy side. While liquidity is abundant in theory, sourcing it efficiently, securely and discretely is anything but straightforward in practice. Liquidnet’s suite of proprietary tools—including Targeted Invitations, VWAP Cross, Surge Capture and SuperBlock—is designed to allow its buy-side clients to identify latent liquidity, execute large block order while maintaining their anonymity and minimizing information leakage, and capitalize on shifting market conditions. Who would bet against Liquidnet winning this category again next year, while also picking up wins in the Waters Rankings and Buy-Side Technology Awards later in 2026?