Sell-Side Technology Awards 2016: Best Swap Execution Facility (SEF) — Tradeweb Markets

Tradeweb Markets and its TW SEF have been awarded the best SEF award at the Sell-Side Technology Awards for the second consecutive year.

The New York-based vendor has shown once again its strength in interest-rate swaps (IRS), by offering flexible methods of execution with a range of protocols. The numbers don’t lie. According to Clarus Financial Technology (ClarusFT), which specializes in data and research in the swaps market, 75 percent of dealer to customer (D2C) block trades are executed through TW SEF. TW SEF’s compression solution, which allows users to customize their workflow optimization and helps them execute complex trades with minimal clearing fees, has been particularly well received. Tradeweb, the first SEF to execute a compression trade, has executed over $3.3 trillion in notional volume via its compression tool since inception, with more than 10 dealers providing liquidity globally.

The success doesn’t stop there though, according to Billy Hult, president of Tradeweb Markets. “TW SEF is also one of the two leading SEFs with the majority of volume in Market Agreed Coupon (MAC) Swaps, and to date, more than $1.1 trillion in MAC swaps have traded on Tradeweb since the functionality was launched in 2014,” Hult says. “TW SEF now has more than 850 market participants and has had over $6 trillion in executed trades. In fact, in March 2016, we had the highest market share among SEFs, according to Clarus Financial Technology.”

Naturally, regulations are always of utmost importance to SEFs. In May 2015, Tradeweb completed the industry’s first packaged mortgage-backed security and US dollar swap transaction on a SEF, according to Hult. “We’ve consistently enhanced our platform to improve existing functionality based on feedback from our clients,” he says. “We have built workflow improvements across trading protocols to help them trade more efficiently as they expand the range of derivatives trades they execute on-SEF.”

Compliance will be the focus looking ahead, Hult says, as Tradeweb has its eye on the Made Available to Trade (MAT) process that the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is currently reviewing. The firm is also looking into launching single-name credit default swap (CDS) trading. “Tradeweb’s success demonstrates that our core strategy is aligned with the needs of market participants: access to flexibility and connectivity, while enhancing workflow efficiency and delivering greater price transparency,” Hult says.

Tradeweb, the first SEF to execute a compression trade, has executed over $3.3 trillion in notional volume via its compression tool since inception, with more than 10 dealers providing liquidity globally.