The migration of Tullett's prices to the Garban platform is expected to spell the end for the rival LibertyDirect electronic bond trading system. About 50 people were fired from Liberty's Treasury trading operation on Friday, reports Reuters, including traditional voice brokers, LibertyDirect e-traders and support and back-office staff.

The ETC (Electronic Trading Community) platform was launched in February this year. It allows traders at major banks and investment houses to transact deals, initially in US Treasuries, interactively via a private extranet or the Internet.

Bruce Collins, chief executive of Tullett & Tokyo Liberty says: "The market for US Treasury securities has seen a number of electronic systems launched over the last year. There is a market demand that liquidity in this highly commoditised market is concentrated into fewer, more efficient, pools."

He says the ETC network will enable Tullett to combine the liquidity from voice broking with electronic trading, "offering us the flexibility to match trades off-screen or to use ETC to transact electronically".

Michael Spencer, chief executive of Garban-Intercapital welcomes Tullett's involvement: "By adding a share of Tullett & Tokyo Liberty's electronic transaction volume, currently estimated to be in excess of $100 billion/month, to that already on the ETC platform, our customers will have access to a greatly enhanced pool of liquidity in both active and off the run issues."

In September, Garban-Intercapital recorded $90 billion in US treasuries transacted across ETC. Spencer says the platform will be rolled out to other fixed income, derivatives and money markets and is expected to cover eight additional products by the first quarter of 2001.