Cognotec is reporting 78% year-on-year growth in electronic FX transaction volumes passed over its systems, confirming industry surveys showing increased uptake of automation in the currency dealing markets.
Approximately one-third of the world’s largest banks and financial institutions use Cognotec's systems to provide FX trading facilities to their customers.
Commenting on the figures, Brian Maccaba, chief executive at Cognotec, says: "It is significant that we have seen this growth in a year that has been difficult for the financial services industry. The predictions of growth that were being made three years ago have proven to be reasonably accurate rather than just dot-com hype."
Globally, Cognotec’s figures show relatively stable and uniform growth in a narrow band between 68% and 73%, with the exception of Japan, which has grown by 405% year-on-year.
"Japan was starting from a low base that reflects the structure of the banking industry there so the figures reflect a catch-up period," says Maccaba, who notes that Japanese banks are using the technology to increase their traditionally close ties with customers while at the same time extending their reach geographically.
A recent report from Greenwich Associates estimates that one in four of the world’s corporate and financial institutions are trading FX products online, up from 17% in 2001. The Greenwich survey indicates that one-third of financial institutions are trading online, with volumes of $2.9 trillion traded, and that 22% of corporates trade some $770 billion annually.