Electronic trading systems only managed to slightly increase their share of global fixed-income trading volume in 2013, accounting for a quarter of total volume executed, according to a report from Greenwich Associates.
The report, based on research among 4000 institutional investors globally, points to a continuation of a trend of low growth in fixed income e-trading.
Nearly half of institutional investors execute at least some portion of their fixed-income trading volume through electronic channels but there are big differences across products and regions.
The e-trading of government bonds experienced growth in 2013 with the US leading the charge. Globally, 55% of government bond investors now trade 35% of total notional volume through electronic systems and Greenwich expects strong growth throughout 2014 as interest rates continue to rise.
Meanwhile, despite the arrival of new entrants into the marketplace, top e-trading platform players continue to dominate. MarketAxess continues to lead corporate bond e-trading in the US, with Tradeweb ahead in US treasury trading and Bloomberg dominating across the board in Europe and Asia.
James Borger, consultant, Greenwich Associates, says: "Institutional e-trading of investment-grade corporate bonds showed limited growth in 2013, with some regions posting declines. This stagnation is expected to continue in 2014."