MarketAxess Announces Monthly Volume Statistics for May 2023

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: MKTX), the operator of a leading electronic trading platform for fixed-income securities, today announced monthly trading volume and preliminary variable transaction fees per million (“FPM”) for the month of May 2023.¹

Chris Concannon, CEO of MarketAxess, commented:

“We registered our best single day of credit trading volume ever in May and delivered solid estimated year-over-year market share gains across U.S. high-yield, emerging markets, Eurobonds and municipal bonds. Additionally, estimated market share in U.S. high-grade, emerging markets and Eurobonds are showing sequential improvement versus first quarter 2023 levels. Credit spread volatility has remained fairly subdued since the initial March market dislocation, which has reduced trading activity by select client segments in U.S. high-yield. The strong rebound in the new issuance calendar in May is a positive for the macro backdrop and the passage of the debt ceiling bill reduces risk and uncertainty in the outlook for fixed income.”

Select May 2023 highlights*

• U.S. high-grade ADV of $5.8 billion, up 2.1%, with estimated market share of 20.2%. The new issue calendar snapped back strongly in May to $155 billion, up approximately 131% from April 2023 levels. Quarter-to-date, estimated market share in U.S. high-grade is 20.8%, running 90 basis points above first quarter 2023 levels.
• U.S. high-yield ADV of $1.5 billion with estimated market share of 16.7% (+80 bps). Low credit spread volatility has reduced trading activity in some client segments within U.S. high-yield with estimated U.S. high-yield TRACE market ADV down 14.5%.
• Emerging markets trading volume decreased 4.8% compared to a decrease of 6.8% in emerging markets estimated market trading volume.²
• 27.8% increase in Eurobonds ADV to $1.8 billion with 17.7% (+350 bps) estimated market share, up from 14.2%.³ Quarter-to-date, estimated market share in Eurobonds is 19.7%, running 370 basis points above first quarter 2023 levels.
• Municipal bond ADV of $403 million, up 3.4%, with estimated market share of 6.0% (+230 bps), up from 3.7%.
• 34% Open Trading® share⁴ of total credit trading volume. Estimated price improvement⁵ via Open Trading was approximately $61 million.
• The preliminary FPM¹ for total credit for May 2023 was approximately $162, compared to $159 in April 2023 and $164 in the prior year. The preliminary FPM for total rates was $4.60, compared to $4.45 in May 2022.

*All comparisons versus May 2022 unless otherwise noted.

Table 1: May 2023 trading ADV
						CREDIT																								RATES
$ in millions (unaudited)	US/UK Trading Days6		Total ADV				Total Credit				High-Grade				High-Yield				Emerging Markets				Eurobonds				Municipal Bonds				Total Rates				US Govt. Bonds				Agcy./Other Govt. Bonds
May-23	22/20		$	28,354			$	12,040			$	5,763			$	1,519			$	2,524			$	1,822			$	403			$	16,314			$	15,907			$	407
May-22	21/21		$	34,797			$	11,958			$	5,647			$	1,690			$	2,778			$	1,426			$	390			$	22,839			$	22,321			$	518
% Change				(19	%)			1	%			2	%			(10	%)			(9	%)			28	%			3	%			(29	%)			(29	%)			(21	%)

Table 1A: May 2023 estimated market share
		CREDIT																		RATES
(unaudited)		High-Grade			High-Yield			High-Grade/High- Yield Combined			Eurobonds			Composite Corporate Bond7			Municipals			US Govt. Bonds
May-23		20.2	%		16.7	%		19.3	%		17.7	%		19.3	%		6.0	%		2.4	%
May-22		21.7	%		15.9	%		20.0	%		14.2	%		19.4	%		3.7	%		3.6	%
Bps Change		(150) bps			+80 bps			(70) bps			+350 bps			(10) bps			+230 bps			(120) bps

Table 1B: Rolling 6-month trading ADV (period ending May 31, 2023 compared to period ending May 31, 2022)
								CREDIT																												RATES
$ in millions (unaudited)		US/UK Trading Days6		Total ADV				Total Credit				High-Grade				High-Yield				Emerging Markets				Eurobonds				Municipal Bonds				Total Rates				US Govt. Bonds				Agcy./Other Govt. Bonds
May-23		124/122		$	33,006			$	12,695			$	5,916			$	1,746			$	2,751			$	1,834			$	435			$	20,311			$	19,889			$	422
May-22		125/124		$	34,870			$	11,402			$	5,347			$	1,574			$	2,820			$	1,365			$	278			$	23,468			$	23,070			$	398
% Change					(5	%)			11	%			11	%			11	%			(2	%)			34	%			56	%			(13	%)			(14	%)			6	%

Table 1C: Rolling 6-month estimated market share (period ending May 31, 2023 compared to period ending May 31, 2022)
		CREDIT																		RATES
(unaudited)		High-Grade			High-Yield			High-Grade/High- Yield Combined			Eurobonds			Composite Corporate Bond7			Municipals			US Govt. Bonds
May-23		20.6	%		18.2	%		20.0	%		17.5	%		19.9	%		6.1	%		3.2	%
May-22		21.6	%		16.0	%		20.0	%		13.0	%		19.0	%		3.8	%		3.5	%
Bps Change		(100) bps			+220 bps			0 bps			+450 bps			+90 bps			+230 bps			(30) bps

¹ The FPM for total credit and total rates for the month of May 2023 are preliminary and may be revised in subsequent updates and public filings. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any fee information in future press releases.

² Emerging markets estimated market trading volume is derived by combining MarketAxess TraX emerging markets trading volume (currently estimated to represent approximately 55% of the total emerging markets market) and FINRA TRACE-reportable emerging markets trading volume, principally U.S. dollar denominated corporates.

³ Eurobonds estimated market share is derived from MarketAxess TraX data for Eurobonds and covered bonds market trading volume, which is currently estimated to represent approximately 70% of the total European market.

⁴ Total credit Open Trading share is derived by taking total Open Trading volume across all credit products where Open Trading is offered and dividing by total credit trading volume across all credit products where Open Trading is offered.

⁵ Estimated price improvement consists of estimated liquidity taker price improvement (defined as the difference between the winning price and the best disclosed dealer cover price) and estimated liquidity provider price improvement (defined as the difference between the winning price and then current Composite+ bid or offer level, offer if the provider is buying, bid if provider is selling) at the time of the inquiry.

⁶ The number of U.S. trading days is based on the SIFMA holiday recommendation calendar and the number of U.K. trading days is based primarily on the U.K. Bank holiday schedule.

⁷ Composite corporate bond estimated market share is defined as combined estimated market share across U.S. high-grade (derived from FINRA TRACE reported data), U.S. high-yield (derived from FINRA TRACE reported data), emerging markets (derived from FINRA TRACE-reportable emerging markets volume, principally U.S. dollar denominated corporates) and Eurobonds (derived from MarketAxess TRAX data which is currently estimated to represent approximately 70% of the total European market) product areas.

Reported MarketAxess volume in all product categories includes only fully electronic trading volume. MarketAxess trading volumes, TRACE reported volumes and MarketAxess Post-Trade processed volumes are available on the Company’s website at investor.marketaxess.com/volume.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements, including statements about the outlook and prospects for Company and industry growth, as well as statements about the Company’s future financial and operating performance. These and other statements that relate to future results and events are based on MarketAxess’ current expectations. The Company’s actual results in future periods may differ materially from those currently expected or desired because of a number of risks and uncertainties, including: global economic, political and market factors; risks relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the possible effects of the economic conditions worldwide resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic; adverse effects as a result of climate change or other ESG risks that could affect our reputation; the level of trading volume transacted on the MarketAxess platform; the rapidly evolving nature of the electronic financial services industry; the level and intensity of competition in the fixed-income electronic trading industry and the pricing pressures that may result; reputational or credibility risks related to our data products and index business; the variability of our growth rate; our ability to introduce new fee plans and our clients’ response; our ability to attract clients or adapt our technology and marketing strategy to new markets; risks related to our growing international operations; our dependence on our broker-dealer clients; the loss of any of our significant institutional investor clients; our exposure to risks resulting from non-performance by counterparties to transactions executed between our clients in which we act as an intermediary in matched principal trades; risks related to self-clearing; risks related to sanctions levied against states or individuals that could expose us to operational or regulatory risks; the effect of rapid market or technological changes on us and the users of our technology; our dependence on third-party suppliers for key products and services; our ability to successfully maintain the integrity of our trading platform and our response to system failures, capacity constraints and business interruptions; the occurrence of design defects, errors, failures or delays with our platforms; our vulnerability to malicious cyber-attacks and attempted data security breaches; our actual or perceived failure to comply with privacy and data protection laws; our ability to protect our intellectual property rights or technology and defend against intellectual property infringement or other claims; our ability to enter into strategic alliances and to acquire other businesses and successfully integrate them with our business; our dependence on our management team and our ability to attract and retain talent; limitations on our flexibility because we operate in a highly regulated industry; the increasing government regulation of us and our clients; risks related to the divergence of U.K. and European Union legal and regulatory requirements following the U.K.’s exit from the European Union; our exposure to costs and penalties related to our extensive regulation; our risks of litigation and securities laws liability; our future capital needs and our ability to obtain capital when needed; limitations on our operating flexibility contained in our credit agreement; and other factors. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. More information about these and other factors affecting MarketAxess’ business and prospects is contained in MarketAxess’ periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and can be accessed at www.marketaxess.com.

About MarketAxess

MarketAxess (Nasdaq: MKTX) operates a leading electronic trading platform that delivers greater trading efficiency, a diversified pool of liquidity and significant cost savings to institutional investors and broker-dealers across the global fixed-income markets. Over 2,000 firms leverage MarketAxess’ patented technology to efficiently trade fixed-income securities. MarketAxess’ award-winning Open Trading® marketplace is widely regarded as the preferred all-to-all trading solution in the global credit markets. Founded in 2000, MarketAxess connects a robust network of market participants through an advanced full trading lifecycle solution that includes automated trading solutions, intelligent data and index products and a range of post-trade services. Learn more at www.marketaxess.com and on Twitter @MarketAxess.

Table 2: Trading Volume Detail
			Month Ended May 31,
In millions (unaudited)			2023								2022									% Change
			Volume				ADV				Volume					ADV				Volume				ADV
Credit
High-grade			$	126,777			$	5,763			$	118,573				$	5,647				6.9		%		2.1		%
High-yield				33,419				1,519				35,495					1,690				(5.8	)			(10.1	)
Emerging markets				55,533				2,524				58,341					2,778				(4.8	)			(9.1	)
Eurobonds				36,443				1,822				29,940					1,426				21.7				27.8
Other credit				9,076				412				8,766					417				3.5				(1.2	)
Total credit trading1				261,248				12,040				251,115					11,958				4.0				0.7
Rates
U.S. government bonds2				349,959				15,907				468,735					22,321				(25.3	)			(28.7	)
Agency and other government bonds1				8,521				407				10,886					518				(21.7	)			(21.4	)
Total rates trading				358,480				16,314				479,621					22,839				(25.3	)			(28.6	)
Total trading			$	619,728			$	28,354			$	730,736				$	34,797				(15.2	)			(18.5	)
Number of U.S. Trading Days3							22									21
Number of U.K. Trading Days4							20									21
			Year-to-Date Ended May 31,
In millions (unaudited)			2023								2022									% Change
			Volume				ADV				Volume					ADV				Volume				ADV
Credit
High-grade			$	627,086			$	6,088			$	579,891				$	5,630				8.1		%		8.1		%
High-yield				183,754				1,784				169,259					1,643				8.6				8.6
Emerging markets				295,995				2,874				305,114					2,962				(3.0	)			(3.0	)
Eurobonds				196,737				1,929				151,115					1,467				30.2				31.5
Other credit				45,307				440				34,865					338				29.9				30.2
Total credit trading1				1,348,879				13,115				1,240,244					12,040				8.8				8.9
Rates
U.S. government bonds2				2,125,292				20,634			$	2,534,322					24,605				(16.1	)			(16.1	)
Agency and other government bonds1				44,792				438				44,359					431				1.0				1.6
Total rates trading				2,170,084				21,072				2,578,681					25,036				(15.8	)			(15.8	)
Total trading			$	3,518,963			$	34,187			$	3,818,925				$	37,076				(7.9	)			(7.8	)
Number of U.S. Trading Days3							103									103
Number of U.K. Trading Days4							102									103
1 Consistent with FINRA TRACE reporting standards, both sides of trades are included in the Company's reported volumes when the Company executes trades on a matched principal basis between two counterparties.
2 Consistent with industry standards, U.S. government bond trades are single-counted.
3 The number of U.S. trading days is based on the SIFMA holiday recommendation calendar.
4 The number of U.K. trading days is based primarily on the U.K. Bank holiday schedule.

 

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MarketAxess Holdings Inc.

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MarketAxess Holdings Inc.

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Source: MarketAxess Holdings Inc.