NYSE is seeking regulatory approvals for its trading and on-chain tokenised securities settlement platform.Lynn MartinIf approved, the launch is set to enable “tokenised trading experiences”, including 24/7 trading of US listed equities and ETFs, instant settlement, orders sized in dollar amounts, and stablecoin-based funding. Subject to regulatory approvals, the platform will power a new NYSE venue that supports trading of tokenised shares fungible with traditionally issued securities as well as tokens natively issued as digital securities.Specifically, the tokenised securities platform combines NYSE’s Pillar matching engine with blockchain-based post-trade systems.This includes the support of multiple chains for settlement and custody, confirmed the trading venue.Lynn Martin, president, NYSE Group, said: “For more than two centuries, the NYSE has transformed the way markets operate. We are leading the industry toward fully on-chain solutions, grounded in the unmatched protections and high regulatory standards that position us to marry trust with state-of-the-art technology.“Harnessing our expertise to reinvent market infrastructure is how we’ll meet and shape the demands of a digital future.”The venue design offers non-discriminatory access to all qualified broker-dealers.Read more: The dangers of digital assets and tokenisationICE – NYSE’s parent company – is in the process of preparing its wider clearing infrastructure to support 24/7 trading and the potential integration of tokenised collateral.The strategy includes work with banks including BNY and Citi to support tokenised deposits across its clearinghouses, aiming to help members manage money outside of traditional banking hours, as well as meeting margin obligations and accommodating funding requirements across different jurisdictions.Michael Blaugrund, VP of strategic initiatives, ICE, explained: “Supporting tokenised securities is a pivotal step in ICE’s strategy to operate on-chain market infrastructure for trading, settlement, custody, and capital formation in the new era of global finance.”NYSE initially proposed plans to expand weekday trading to 22 hours a day back in October 2024, with other trading venues also making strides in the space as the market continues to march towards the prospect of extended trading hours.The post NYSE moves forward with 24/7 US equities trading appeared first on The TRADE.

Amaury de Miguel has joined Bernstein’s cash equity execution team in Paris as an electronic sales trader.  In his new role, de Miguel will support execution strategy design, optimise liquidity access and reduce trading costs for Bernstein’s clients, and bring a deeper focus on electronic trading and innovation in client solutions to the trading team.  Specifically, his appointment aligns with the firm’s wider goal to build out its EEA client-facing capabilities in Paris.  He joins Bernstein from AXA Investment Managers, where he spent the past three years working across various different roles.  Read more – BNP Paribas and AXA Investment Managers trading teams unify He initially joined the French buy-side firm in 2022 as a trading engineer, before becoming an equity quantitative analyst, and later stepping up to his most recent position as an electronic trader and data scientist.  Previously in his career, he worked as a quantum computing researcher at IBM.  Bernstein confirmed de Miguel’s appointment when contacted by The TRADE.  The appointment comes following a series of significant news for Bernstein in recent months. In January, the firm confirmed that it is currently in negotiations to cut a significant number of roles from within its French office.  The move concerns up to 28 roles, with no forced redundancies, The TRADE understands. The post Bernstein expands cash equity execution team with AXA IM hire appeared first on The TRADE.

As part of an update of its Asia credit trading platform, ANZ has hired several traders and analysts in a move designed to support buy-side clients’ execution and address risk management needs. Bwochau Fu.The team is based across New York, Shanghai, and Singapore, The TRADE understands. Specifically, the bank’s re-established credit trading desk comprises five traders and two dedicated desk analysts, led by head of credit trading for Asia, Bwochau Fu, who joined the firm in H2 2025. Fu has served in senior positions at several firms, including China International Capital Corporation Hong Kong Asset Management (CICC HKAM), Deutsche Bank, and Morgan Stanley Asia, and personally covers USD bond trading in Australia and Japan on the ANZ desk. While currently his team focuses on credit flow trading in Asian sovereign, quasi-sovereign, corporate, and financial credits, primarily in USD, ANZ plans to further develop SGD and CNH credit trading capabilities in early 2026, The TRADE understands. Speaking to The TRADE about the team’s priorities, Fu explains: “We now have the right people in place across regions and products. The focus is straightforward: consistent pricing, reliable liquidity, and full responsiveness to client execution needs across the Asia credit complex.” Read more: Is Singapore set to become the next major trading hub? The new hires include Andy Leung who recently joined from HSBC as a market maker. At ANZ he is specifically focused on bolstering its sovereign and quasi-sovereign offering while re-establishing flow trading in Hong Kong and Taiwanese credits. Chirag Srivastava also joined the firm in recent months. He is responsible for broader Asia ex-China/Hong Kong markets, overseeing Korea, India, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. Prior to joining ANZ, Srivastava worked stints at Standard Chartered and Deutsche Bank focused on Asian credit bond trading. Aurora Guo and Nikolai Beck are also members of the desk, having been with the firm for several years. ANZ tells The TRADE that both were “instrumental in preserving stability and client coverage throughout the update […] enabling the desk to offer clients consistent, round-the-clock liquidity in Asian investment-grade credits”. Guo specialises in Chinese financials and corporates, while Beck maintains pricing and risk management continuity across European and US trading time zones. Two analysts have also been added to the Asia credit trading desk – Shanghai-based Ting Meng and Singapore-based Viacheslav (Slava) Shilin. Both dedicated desk credit strategists have extensive industry experience, and engage directly with clients providing detailed credit analysis and actionable trade recommendations.  Commenting on the new hires, Danny Choueiri, who leads ANZ’s credit sales efforts in Europe said, “We’re pleased to have the new team on board and are already seeing an uptick in client volumes […] the message is clear, we’re back stronger and ready to trade.” The post ANZ Bank bolsters Asia credit trading team  appeared first on The TRADE.

State Street has completed the first reverse repo trade for MN, an asset manager serving Dutch pension funds, using an enhanced service under the Eurex Select invest repo model.  The transaction was executed through a newly designed structure in which State Street acts on behalf of its client to clear and settle reverse repo trades through Eurex Clearing’s centrally cleared counterpart (CCP) framework.  Read more – MN’s Rick Lodder on in-house algorithmic execution platforms as the way forward“We’re delighted to launch our enhanced Eurex Select Invest model for repo – developed in close collaboration with Eurex – and with MN as our first client.  “The model streamlines buy-side access to the Euro denominated repo market and enables clients to trade independently with any of the current 170 market participants,” said Christian Schütze, head of financing solutions, continental Europe at State Street.  Specifically, the arrangement allows buy-side clients to access the liquidity and risk management benefits of clearing without the operational and onboarding requirements associated with direct membership of a central securities depository.  The post State Street executes first Eurex repo trade for Dutch asset manager  MN appeared first on The TRADE.

As digital assets begin to make their mark across the industry, institutional appetite is growing, however operational challenges appear to be creating obstacles for traditional finance firms looking to enter these markets.  An increasing number of asset managers, banks and trading firms are beginning to actively explore crypto markets, however issues related to connectivity, infrastructure and workflows for traditional finance means that firms cannot ‘plug and play’ their existing technology to access digital assets, as underlined by a recent Acuiti report. Specifically, two thirds of respondents to the survey said that building connectivity to crypto venues was ‘challenging’, while only 34% found no difference to traditional markets. According to the study, the most commonly cited connectivity issue in crypto derivatives trading from respondents was the lack of standardisation across venues, with more than 75% highlighting this as the most significant challenge. Read more – The TRADE predictions series 2026: The institutionalisation of digital assets In addition, structural hurdles such as navigating access to liquidity across fragmented venues and optimising latency and performance were also further issues that firms highlighted when seeking to achieve efficient connectivity in these markets. Speaking to The TRADE, Will Mitting, founder and managing director at Acuiti, said: “We have seen an uptick in interest in the second half of 2025 from firms in traditional finance to enter digital assets markets. This is in part due to regulatory clarity in the US but also as a result of expectations that tokenisation will become a key part of financial workflows over the next five to 10 years. “Digital assets markets today are still very fragmented both in terms of liquidity but also in terms of the lack of standardisation of things like protocols and APIs at venues. Moving from tradfi to crypto is not a plug and play but requires an understanding of the nuances of the market.” The challenge ahead The study’s findings indicate that adapting to digital assets is not a difficult task because these markets are relatively new to the industry, but instead, because they do not behave like any other institutional market. This sentiment was also echoed in the survey when it comes to the challenges of building front office software for digital assets trading, due to a historical lack of established third-party vendors. As revealed in the study, half of the firms surveyed built their front office software in-house, while only 10% opted for a third-party vendor, although all firms that outsourced began crypto trading operations with the last five years. Additionally, utilising a mixture of front office software, sourced from in-house, third-party vendors and broker provided solutions are also a popular choice for some firms looking to integrate into crypto markets, indicating the increasing sophistication of third-party products. As institutional interest in digital assets continues to grow, it appears that the firms that embrace purpose-built infrastructure rather than rely on legacy systems will reap the most rewards. Although various obstacles to the integration of traditional finance with crypto derivatives markets remain, the landscape is continually evolving, and will be one to watch in the months, and years to come. Read more – Citadel Securities and Virtu-backed EDXM International launches digital assets-focused futures exchange Acuiti collated its “Navigating the path to crypto: A guide for tradfi firms” report through conversations with key market players, as well as members of its crypto derivatives expert network that had made the transition from traditional finance to crypto. The post Institutional demand for digital assets growing, yet obstacles to adoption remain appeared first on The TRADE.

George Kierton has joined BlackRock as a vice president, emerging markets trader, based out of London.  Kierton brings a decade of buy-side experience to his new role at the asset manager, with a particular focus on fixed income trading.  He joins BlackRock from Muzinich & Co., where he spent more than a year as a trader.  Prior to this, he also served as Amundi for almost three years as a senior fixed income trader.  He has also held various fixed income trading positions at firms including BMO Global Asset Management and MUFG. He began his industry career as an analyst at Northern Trust Asset Management.  BlackRock declined to comment when contacted by The TRADE.  Read more – BlackRock and AWS partner to bring Aladdin onto its cloud Kierton’s new role follows a spate of recent appointments for BlackRock in recent months. In December, the firm promoted Paul Battams as global head of equity trading after 17 years at the asset management giant, where he most recently served as head of international equity trading.  Similarly, in July 2025, the firm named Daniel Veiner as head of markets, to oversee trading, origination, corporate access and ETF markets at the firm.  He has been with BlackRock for 22 years, most recently as co-head of global trading.  The post BlackRock appoints new emerging markets trader appeared first on The TRADE.

Citadel Brian Pastor has been promoted to head of trading, global equities at Citadel, after almost eight years at the firm.   Pastor initially joined the firm in 2018 as an equity trader, before moving up the ranks to take on his new role.  Based in New York, he has worked across financial markets for more than 25 years, and prior to his time at Citadel, worked as a managing director and partner at Latimer Light Capital, which announced it would be shuttering its operations in December 2018.   Previously in his career, he also served as a trader at PFM LP for almost 10 years.   Pastor has also held various trader positions at firms including Deutsche Bank, Andor Capital Management and UBS Investment Bank. Invesco  Invesco has promoted head trader, Samuel Henderson to the role of head of EMEA equity trading.   Henderson brings more than two decades of industry experience to his new role, and has worked across various sectors during his career, spanning program trading, equities, trading systems and electronic trading.   Henderson initially joined Invesco in 2017 as head of EMEA program trading, before later being named head trader for EMEA equities in 2021.   He has held various senior roles at firms across the world, and prior to joining Invesco, served as a trader and portfolio manager at Pointbreak Asset Management in Sydney for two years.   He has also worked at Dimensional Fund Advisors in Sydney as a senior trader and served as AB Bernstein’s head of electronic execution for more than five years, based out of both Hong Kong and London.   He has previously served as a portfolio trader at ITG in London. ING  ING has named David Leech as the firm’s new global head of FX trading, succeeding Gary Prince.  Prince was made head of financial markets EMEA at ING in October 2025 – ING confirmed that Leech will report hierarchically to Prince and functionally to Niall Carton, global head of financial markets trading.  In his new role, London-based Leech will take on the oversight of all ING’s FX trading activities across the world, bringing more than two decades of markets experience to his new position.  The appointment marks an internal promotion for Leech, who initially joined ING in 2016 as a senior FX forwards trader, before later being promoted to head of FX UK in 2023.   Prior to his time at ING, Leech served as an emerging market bonds and derivatives trader at various firms, including Morgan Stanley, UBS, Royal Bank of Scotland, and ABN AMRO, where he began his industry career.  Citi  BNP Paribas named Alexander Ford new managing director, head of UK cash sales trading.  London-based Ford brings more than two decades of sell-side experience to his new role and joins the firm after nearly 5 years at Citi.  During his time at Citi, Ford served as head of equity block and liquidity solutions.  Prior to this, he worked at Morgan Stanley for almost 12 years, initially joining as an equity sales trader, before later becoming head of UK flow derivatives sales for the firm.  Ford began his industry career as an equity sales trader at UBS Investment Bank in 2005.  Earlier this month, BNP Paribas and AXA Investment Managers combined their trading teams under the BNP Paribas Dealing Services umbrella, as part of the firm’s acquisition on AXA IM in July 2025.  The move marks the completion of all main legal mergers, and also marks the formation of BNP Paribas Asset Management as a single entity.  Societe Generale  Societe Generale has named Gary Harper as the firm’s new head of emerging market credit trading.  He joins from Absa Group, where he spent five years as head of eurobond trading. Before that Harper worked in an emerging markets credit – electronic trading role at Liquidnet.  Harper has also previously served at Mizuho in an executive director position, working across Turkey, South Africa, and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).  Prior to this, he served at Barclays as emerging markets credit flow trader director.  Other roles include stints at BNP Paribas, CIBC and ING in trading roles. Nomura Fred Bethell has joined CLSA as a program sales trader, based out of London.   Bethell has worked across financial markets spanning various different roles and asset classes for more than 15 years and joins CLSA from buy-side firm Aviva Investors.  During his time at Aviva, he served as an equity trader in the firm’s London office for seven years.  This followed a stint at Odey Asset Management, where Bethell worked in the same role for almost three years.  Elsewhere, Bethell has previously served in assistant portfolio manager roles at Walker Crips and Ashcourt Rowan. The post People Moves Monday: Citadel, Invesco, ING, and more… appeared first on The TRADE.

Mark McMillan has joined Nomura as global head of electronic foreign exchange.In his new role, London-based McMillan will oversee all trading, sales, quant and strats within Nomura’s electronic business.  In an internal memo seen by The TRADE, David Leigh, head of global FX and emerging markets and Matthew Hampson, co-head of global markets digital office at Nomura, said highlighted that the hire marks an “exciting time” for the firm’s FX and emerging markets franchise. “We are seeing strong franchise growth […] with our strong existing team and continued focus on the build out of Nomura’s electronic FX platform, we are confident in the continued growth and success of our business,” said Leigh and Hampson. Read more: Nomura completes Macquarie acquisition in $1.8 billion deal McMillan joins the firm following an 11-year tenure at Standard Chartered, where he most recently served as a managing director, global head, markets product management and data analytics.  He initially joined the firm as an executive director in eFX trading in 2014, and during his time at the firm, served in various roles spanning eFX, algorithmic trading quants, product management and data.  Prior to this, he worked at HSBC for more than four years as an eFX quantitative analyst and trader, where he helped to found the firm’s eFX quant team.  Previously in his career, he has also worked at Dresdner Kleinwort.  McMillan’s new role follows significant developments for Nomura in recent months. In December 2025, the firm completed its acquisition of Macquarie’s US and European public asset management business for $1.8 billion.  As part of the move, various employees of Macquarie joined Nomura, including Dylan Kluth, who was named head of equities trading for Asia Pacific at Nomura Asset Management.The post Nomura names new global head of electronic FX appeared first on The TRADE.

How has the role of data in trading and investment decisions evolved over the last few years?  A robust data strategy and foundation are essential in today’s landscape, especially given the rapid growth of AI, which has set even higher standards. We’ve seen a major shift where investors have moved away from storing data in isolated silos to adopting interoperable platforms. Data discoverability, entitlements, quality, and delivery have become critical elements to a firm’s data journey. It empowers teams with reliable analytics, reducing manual work, and enabling smarter, faster investment decisions. Data transformation, normalisation, modelling, and a strong semantic layer enables investors to fully harness their data resources. Ultimately, this unlocks new investment opportunities for clients.   By focusing on governance, adaptability, and scalability, firms can move beyond just experimenting with AI – they can achieve real, enterprise-wide impact, which is really exciting. Those who invest in future-ready data infrastructure are the ones best positioned to capture value and drive innovation for their clients.  As regulation and market structure continually change, what challenges or opportunities does this create for market participants?  Evolving regulation and shifting market structures bring both real challenges and opportunities for market participants, especially in private markets. Private market data is often fragmented, unstructured, and missing standardised identifiers, which makes aggregation and analysis a complex task. At the same time, the diversity of data sources and irregular valuation cycles make transparency and reporting even more challenging, often resulting in inconsistencies and information gaps. The industry has made meaningful progress in improving transparency and standardisation, but there’s still a long way to go. To address these challenges, firms should adopt advanced data strategies that leverage AI, for challenges like transforming unstructured data into usable formats, or utilise machine learning for effective entity resolution. Once data is organised, it can be modelled to support sophisticated analytics and comprehensive reporting, helping firms meet regulatory requirements and make more informed decisions. Modern platforms are essential, offering seamless access and distribution of high-quality data, with governance and compliance built in at every step. By maintaining a strong data discipline, firms can not only overcome operational hurdles and adapt to regulatory changes but build a data foundation for AI solutions.  What role and responsibility do platforms like JP Morgan have in helping traders make faster, more effective decisions?  Investors often face the challenge of extracting meaningful insights from an overwhelming volume of information. While traditional data lakes centralise data, they still require significant manual effort to clean, organise, and prepare it before analysis can begin. This slows down decision-making and limits the value of data, especially in fast-moving markets and periods of heightened volatility. Advanced solutions like data mastering and customisation can support investors on their journey toward enterprise AI. Our platform Fusion supports the seamless integration and normalisation of data from multiple sources for consistency, supported by a semantic layer that brings business context to complex financial information, with built-in connectivity to analytics solutions and cloud platforms.  Data quantity versus quality is an ongoing trade-off and discussion across the industry. How do you see this balance shifting over the course of 2026?  The industry’s data journey began with a focus on collecting as much information as possible, centralising it in large lakes, and relying on technology to manage quality and structure. But we’ve learned that simply gathering more data doesn’t automatically lead to better insights or outcomes. AI models are only as good as the data they consume. Without strong governance and consistency, solutions can fall short, becoming unreliable and hard to repeat. As AI adoption matures, the focus is shifting toward disciplined data management that enables scalable and well-governed solutions. Looking ahead, firms are putting more emphasis on making their data truly ‘AI-ready’, rather than simply adding more inputs. This means investing in robust data management, workflow management, and semantic models to ensure data is accurate, consistent, and meaningful in context.  The most advanced data platforms are leading the way, orchestrating data pipelines, normalising formats, and embedding governance from the very start. Those who prioritise quality and build future-ready infrastructure will be best positioned to turn their data into a genuine strategic asset, driving innovation and smarter decision-making across their organisations. The post Fireside Friday with… JP Morgan’s Jason Mirsky appeared first on The TRADE.

CME Group is set to expand its cryptocurrency derivatives offering amid surging institutional and retail demand for regulated digital asset products. Specifically, CME Group will launch futures contracts linked to Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar. The products are scheduled to launch on 9 February, subject to regulatory approval, and will be available in both standard and micro-sized contracts.  Cardano futures will be offered in contract sizes of 100,000 ADA and 10,000 ADA, Chainlink futures at 5,000 LINK and 250 LINK, and Stellar futures at 250,000 and 12,500 lumens. Giovanni Vicioso, global head of cryptocurrency products at CME Group, said demand for regulated instruments to manage price risk and gain exposure to digital assets had increased over the past year. “Given crypto’s record growth over the last year, clients are looking for trusted, regulated products to manage price risk as well as additional tools to gain exposure to this dynamic market,” Vicioso said.  “With these new micro, and larger-size contracts, market participants will have greater choice, flexibility and capital efficiency.” Read more – Integral integrates CME Group FX markets into workflow solutionThe new contracts complement CME Group’s existing cryptocurrency suite, which includes futures and options linked to Bitcoin, Ether, XRP and Solana. The new offering has also garnered support from various market participants, including Wedbush Securities, NinjaTrader and Volatility Shares.  The post CME Group expands digital asset derivatives suite with new futures   appeared first on The TRADE.

LMAX Group and digital asset infrastructure provider Ripple have unveiled a strategic multi-year partnership, as part of an effort to drive forward the convergence of traditional financial and digital capital markets.  David MercerAs part of the collaboration, Ripple is set to provide $150 million in debt financing, to bolster LMAX’s long-term growth across asset classes, and will see stablecoin Ripple USD (RLUSD) become a core collateral asset integrated into LMAX’s institutional trading infrastructure.  Moreover, the new offering is expected to enable LMAX’s clients across the world to make use of RLUSD’s cross-collateralisation and margin efficiency capabilities across their spot crypto, perpetual futures and CFD trading activities. Read more – Digital assets and traditional finance: Can two parallel lanes converge? “Partnering with a leader like Ripple is a milestone for LMAX, reflecting confidence and momentum in our cross-asset growth strategy. With the benefit of greater US and global regulatory clarity, fiat-backed stablecoins will be a key catalyst in driving the convergence of TradFi and digital assets and we firmly believe that RLUSD is positioned at the forefront,” said David Mercer, chief executive of LMAX Group.  Specifically, LMAX’s clients are expected to benefit from enhanced liquidity, margin efficiency, secure custody, institutional on-ramps and 24/7 cross-asset market access through the partnership.  The new offering also includes with the integration of LMAX’s digital assets exchange with multi-asset prime broker Ripple Prime, with the aim of providing a gateway for digital assets trading, without the challenges of market fragmentation and counterparty risk.  Read more – The TRADE predictions series 2026: The institutionalisation of digital assets Jack McDonald, senior vice president of stablecoins at Ripple, said: “Institutions are increasingly recognising the transformative potential of blockchain technology to modernise global financial market structure. “This partnership will accelerate the utilisation of RLUSD – already a top 5 USD-backed stablecoin – within one of the largest and most sophisticated trading environments.” The news marks a further development in a string of significant news for Ripple in recent months. In April 2025, the firm became the first crypto business to own a global multi-asset prime broker, following its acquisition of Hidden Road in a deal valued at $1.25 billion.  The acquisition, once completed, will be one of the largest of its kind in the digital asset world.  The post LMAX and Ripple enter multi-year partnership to drive institutional digital asset adoption appeared first on The TRADE.

Invesco has promoted head trader, Samuel Henderson to the role of head of EMEA equity trading.  Henderson brings more than two decades of industry experience to his new role, and has worked across various sectors during his career, spanning program trading, equities, trading systems and electronic trading.  He steps up to the position following the departure of Invesco’s head of trading – EMEA and APAC equities, Paul Squires in November 2025, as revealed by The TRADE at the time.  Squires had been with the firm for six and a half years, and was responsible for 31 traders across the UK, EU, and the US. Henderson initially joined Invesco in 2017 as head of EMEA program trading, before later being named head trader for EMEA equities in 2021.  He has held various senior roles at firms across the world, and prior to joining Invesco, served as a trader and portfolio manager at Pointbreak Asset Management in Sydney for two years.  He has also worked at Dimensional Fund Advisors in Sydney as a senior trader, and served as AB Bernstein’s head of electronic execution for more than five years, based out of both Hong Kong and London.  He has previously served as a portfolio trader at ITG in London. Invesco declined to comment when contacted by The TRADE.  The post Invesco promotes head trader to lead EMEA equity trading appeared first on The TRADE.

Cboe Europe has announced plans to shutter its Cboe Europe Derivatives (CEDX) exchange service, with final trading scheduled for 20 February 2026.  Specifically, the wind down of the exchange included all CEDX products being set to ‘close only’ and any products with no open interest placed into a trading halt and delisted on 12  January 2026.  Cboe stated that the decision reflects the firm’s bid for strategic alignment, and will redirect resources to “opportunities that deliver the highest potential return across the organisation.”  No changes are expected to be seen in Cboe’s other European businesses, spanning its cash equity exchanges and clearing house, Cboe Clear Europe. Read more – Cboe Europe derivatives exchange secures first trading banks ahead of September launch Cboe Europe launched CEDX in collaboration with Cboe’s pan-European clearing house, EuroCCP – which has since rebranded to Cboe Clear Europe – in September 2021, with the aim of offering futures and options trading on single country and pan-European indices, and bolstering equity derivatives markets across Europe.  Speaking about CEDX’s closure, a spokesperson for Cboe Global Markets, said: “After careful consideration, we have made the decision to close Cboe Europe Derivatives (CEDX). We will work closely with our customers, regulators, and other key stakeholders to help ensure a smooth and orderly wind down of operations.  “While we have made the decision to close CEDX, Europe remains central to our long-term growth strategy. We plan to continue to build on the strengths of our European cash equities and clearing businesses, alongside our global derivatives and data franchises.” The firm further confirmed that it will continue to promote options education initiatives, as well as respond to demand from European institutional investors for access to US derivatives products and markets.  The closure follows news in September that CEDX had been set to launch Cboe Flexible Exchange (FLEX) options in Europe in Q1 2026, to enhance risk management tools for institutional investors in the region.  The launch had also received the backing of ETF issuers, First Trust Global Portfolios and Vest Financial.  Elsewhere, Cboe has also unveiled significant developments for its US derivatives offerings in recent months, and in September 2025, the exchange announced than it would offer cash-settled futures and options on the soon-to-be launched Cboe MGTEN Index.  The expansion aims to provide investors with opportunities to access ten of the most actively traded US-listed large-cap stocks for AI technology and growth-oriented companies.  The post Cboe shuts doors on its European derivatives exchange service appeared first on The TRADE.

Bernstein is currently in negotiations to cut a significant number of roles from within its French office, the firm has confirmed.Specifically, “Bernstein France has entered into discussions with trade unions regarding the implementation of a voluntary redundancy program,” according to a spokesperson. The move concerns up to 28 roles, with no forced redundancies, The TRADE understands.It comes as Societe Generale continues its cost efficiency strategy since the launch of the equities and research joint venture back in April 2024.The JV between equity research and cash equities specialist AllianceBernstein and derivatives and prime services firm Societe Generale was set to enable Societe Generale to offer clients a suite of global services across the equities value-chain, ranging from equity and macro research to agency execution, equity derivatives, prime brokerage and equity capital markets offerings.From the trading perspective, the JV is made up of one unique trading team covering both high touch and low touch per region – in the US, Europe, and Asia, respectively. In the US, most of this team hails from Alliance Bernstein, as reported by The TRADE at the time the JV was announced, whilst in Asia and in Europe the teams are a 50/50 split of both Societe Generale and Alliance Bernstein’s existing teams.Read more: The new kid on the block – a closer look at ‘Bernstein’Speaking to The TRADE at the time, back in 2024, Stephane Loiseau, previously head of Societe Generale’s cash equities business and deputy chief executive of Bernstein, highlighted that the main focus for the JV going forward was on equity prime brokerage. “It is definitely the biggest wallet in equities. When you look at the global picture, cash equities is a small sliver in comparison and currently the two are connected so now we’ll finally be in a position where we can build that as a product globally,” said Loiseau at the time.He added that the joint venture provided the opportunity to be relevant globally and across the bigger sway of the equity chain. “Societe Generale has obviously very strong expertise in derivatives. So, once you put these two things together (research and cash equities with equity derivatives and prime services) you have the scope and expertise to offer world class content (e.g. research) and a leading global trading platform.”The post Bernstein to cut up to 28 roles in France as part of future growth plans appeared first on The TRADE.

Ediphy has launched a new suite of trading and analytics APIs through its developer portal, as part of an effort to enhance automation for bond and interest rate swaps (IRS) markets.  The new offering will allow developers and systematic trading desks to gain access to Ediphy’s execution, liquidity and analytics tools, tailored to credit, government and SSA bonds and IRS markets. Specifically, the APIs services span execution management, liquidity checking and transaction cost analysis (TCA). Speaking to The TRADE, Chris Murphy, co-founder and chief executive of Ediphy, explains: “The future of fixed income markets requires traders to not be constrained by any single venue or protocol. By providing a unified abstraction layer, we are enabling market participants to transcend legacy infrastructure and automate their workflows on their terms. “These APIs allow firms to focus on their trading strategies instead of navigating the complexity of the underlying market plumbing.” Read more – Ediphy consents to lifting the automatic suspension of the FCA UK bond tape contract In addition, the suite of products has been designed with the goal of bolstering transparency and workflow efficiency in fixed income markets in particular, with the new developer portal expected to serve as a central hub for firms integrating Ediphy’s infrastructure into their workflows.  The development aligns with Ediphy’s mission to automate the wider fixed income sphere and builds on the firm’s recent success in being named the consolidated tape provider (CTP) for bonds in the EU by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) in July 2025.  The tender, which will be taken on by Ediphy-led consortium, fairCT, will see the firm operating the CT for a five-year period, under ESMA’s supervision. Ediphy is now expected to apply for authorisation to continue with the tape proceedings. The post Ediphy unveils trading and analytics API suite in a bid to automate fixed income markets appeared first on The TRADE.

Up against fierce competition, UBS Asset Management’s Stuart Lawrence was voted Industry Person of the Year 2025 by his peers, following a live ballot at The TRADE’s Leaders in Trading Awards in November. He is the first buy-side nominee to ever receive the accolade. Speaking to The TRADE about the recognition, which distinguishes an individual proactively working to change markets for the better, Lawrence affirms: “We all have a responsibility to make the markets better and that hasn’t really changed in my time in the City. It is easy to think that the evolution will be decided by forces beyond our control but there are mechanisms and institutions that exist to give a voice to both the buy- and sell-side. “Change can come in the form of regulation or initiatives that have formed to drive improvement. The exchanges, venues and brokers want to hear what matters to the firms that use them – and the dialogue can lead to positive change. That doesn’t mean you have to be involved with every initiative. Just find the one that excites you.” Despite a mention of ‘imposter syndrome’ during his on-stage acceptance speech, Lawrence has demonstrably more than proven his capabilities, with the success of his desk further corroborated with the team’s ‘Trading Desk of the Year’ award win back in 2022. His words, imbued with reflections on how far the markets have come and evolved for the better, resonated strongly with an industry looking to embrace the new. In a time of continued – and accelerating – innovation, Lawrence is continually looking ahead, an approach which has permeated his career thus far and to his current role as head of European equities trading. When it comes to his successes, Lawrence is quick to heap praise on his teams (both past and present), highlighting how relationships have played a key role in shaping his trajectory thus far. “I tend to speak a lot about how technology will shape the future, but I don’t want to overlook the fact that this is a relationship business. Speaking to people is as important now as it was when I started. Trust is built on interaction [and] building solid relationships pays long-term dividends.”Dreaming of ‘Wall Street’ Lawrence began his trading career in capital markets in 2001, having decided early on – at the age of 12 in fact – that the trading life would be a perfect fit. “I think it’s fair to say that my career has not followed the planned or smooth trajectory I would have imagined when I started, but it’s been an interesting ride. I decided I wanted to join the finance industry after watching the film ‘Wall Street’ when I was 12, despite having no idea what that necessarily entailed, because I thought it looked fun. “After four great years at university, I joined ABN AMRO’s graduate program and, following the usual rotations (and despite encouragement from numerous people to become an analyst instead), I decided I wanted to be an equity trader.” Beginning a career in market making is by no means an easy feat, as Lawrence is quick to admit. However, the adage that pressure makes diamonds certainly appears to ring true in this case. “I was definitely naïve when I started as a market maker – it was a baptism of fire and the learning curve was steep,” asserts Lawrence. Despite not landing in the illicit fictional world depicted in the 1987 blockbuster, Lawrence did indeed join the industry during a particularly interesting period. A time where commission rates were still high, and the market was dealing with the fallout from the dot-com bubble. In Lawrence’s own words “it felt like change was on the horizon”. Following four years market-making, he made the move to small West End hedge fund Ennismore, focused on mid- and small-cap companies. Here, Lawrence helped to set-up the trading desk from scratch – his first taste of the buy-side. Discussing the journey to his current role at UBS, Lawrence explains that the variety throughout his career continues to stand him in good stead, influencing his approach to leading the EMEA equities desk. “[At Ennismore] I learned the demands of that side of the business. When the financial crisis hit, I took a year off to travel and to tick-off some of my bucket list and in 2010, I joined Instinet as a sales trader for US clients, with some portfolio trading added to the mix. After that followed a whistlestop couple of years. “I moved back to buy-side trading with Principal Global Investors, but two years later had to decline a move to Singapore. From there I joined Kepler Cheuvreux briefly to cover US clients but when the UBS Asset Management job came up, I knew it was what I was looking for.” Lawrence joined UBS AM in June 2019, subsequently becoming head of the London trading desk in December 2021 before taking responsibility for equities trading for the EMEA region three years later. “Having spent almost the same amount of time on both sides of the industry, I have gained significant insight, both in understanding of the different roles but also in empathy for how my actions affect those I interact with […] Though there were more changes of jobs in a short period than I would have liked, all gave me experience and insight into how different firms do things.”The cusp of the next trading revolution Delving deeper into how have things changed during his tenure, both the overall trading sphere and a traders’ respective day-to-day work, Lawrence highlights three key pillars contributing to the evolution – technology, market structure and attitudes. “Technology has been the game-changer of the last 20 years and has provided countless benefits for trading desks, and the industry as a whole, dramatically improving efficiency,” he explains. “[…] Through the improved technology, desks are now able to execute exponentially larger flows than in the past, with fewer resources. This is advantageous but that requires greater diligence and oversight.” Specifically, he emphasises that the key technological advancements include algo wheels, bilateral liquidity feeds direct into EMS’, and the ability to scale. “Traders now have much more control, more information. The options of how to trade have grown substantially, with different and new venue types, enhanced risk options and a plethora of different algo suites with nuanced offerings. But all of this comes with more responsibility. A buy-side trader has to understand these tools, utilise them in the best possible way and mine the post-trade performance data.” He adds: “When I first started, we had to manually work out the VWAP execution strategy for each order on a bit of paper. With the advent of algorithms, traders have stopped needing to execute orders ‘by hand’, allowing them to utilise their time more effectively by focusing on trading strategies and innovate through new and better execution options […] With the advent of AI, I think we are at the cusp of the next trading revolution.” On the market structure side, the notorious Mifid and Mifid II developments have lived up to expectations, truly shaking up the old industry model with regards to transparency and commissions, says Lawrence. “There is now a steady, but consistent, evolution within market structure, with exchanges, venues and regulators all working on transformation”. Simultaneously, alongside the empirical evolution of the industry, there have also been important developments among the people behind these businesses. Lawrence describes this as “a sea of change in attitudes”, a trend which he asserts is equally as important as market developments. In his acceptance speech at the Leaders in Trading Awards, Lawrence delved further into this, enthusing that “the dramatic evolution has been driven by every one of you [in this room tonight] in some way. We need to help keep the momentum that has been so hard fought and won to continue into the future.” He added: “Trading has traditionally been where the loudest voice won the argument, and mentoring was an afterthought. Now, we’re at the tail end of 2025 – there’s better inclusivity, greater diversity, deeper respect, and the industry finally acknowledges that mental health is a serious issue that must be addressed. “I raise this because there’s always more that we can do to help the younger generation succeed in this industry. Tonight, we are gathered here as leaders of trading, and we need to live up to that mantle.”Fostering talent When it comes to hiring within the trading sphere, the constantly evolving nature of the game continues to play an increasingly important part in the make-up of firms. For Lawrence, the bringing together of an effective desk is a thoughtful process, with longevity and future growth key considerations. “Putting together a successful team is a complicated puzzle. Experience and skillsets are important, but they are just two parts of the equation. A team needs to be balanced, and skillsets need to be complimentary rather than overlapping. “The best teams are built of individuals who don’t have the same knowledge or experience but who all pull in the same direction towards a common goal.” Speaking about his team at UBS AM specifically, Lawrence asserts that his own preference is to work with people who are constantly challenging both him, and the status quo – those who look to help evolve the desk. In the same vein, he explains that the firm itself seeks out individuals who are self-motivated and are clear on their goals and what they want to achieve. Lawrence adds: “It is clichéd to talk about being a team player but that doesn’t make it any less important. I would not want to hire an individual who prefers to be a lone wolf or someone who would disrupt the balance by being self-focused. Success can be achieved as part of a team. “Hiring the wrong person could be disastrous for morale so I always look out for these traits.” Looking back at one’s own career is always full of mixed emotions, with the line between a lesson and a regret often very thin. As Lawrence himself puts it, “hindsight is a trader’s best friend,” as he explains: “I’d be the first to admit there are numerous moments in my career where I would go back and change things. If I am honest, these are situations I could have resolved at the time but didn’t, whether through a lack of knowledge or lack of motivation. On occasion, I have become too complacent or comfortable in a role, and consequently lost focus and drive. “[…] In retrospect, I should have made the change but didn’t and that failure sits with me. When you are not learning new things or interested in what you are doing then it is a slippery slope.” Addressing what he would do differently if given his time again, Lawrence highlights the importance of a mentor and proactively seeking one out, adding that doing so is one way to bolster the confidence to ask questions. He tells The TRADE that to begin a career in capital markets is no mean feat, with only those truly dedicated set to succeed. Especially given that wins aren’t immediate and require a lot of hard work. “The industry is not getting any easier, so anyone who wants to join it needs to be truly committed to their ambitions. Firstly, they need to back themselves, be a self-starter and have confidence in their ability. They should ask questions, for understanding to begin with but later to challenge. They should proactively read around various market topics and if things don’t make sense – ask the question. “Networking is also key (and something I struggled with for many years), get to know people – both your internal peers and people outside your firm. Ask to attend events and talks. Conversation is a key to learning. Try and find a good mentor; someone you trust who is prepared to give you their valuable time in helping you. Finally, don’t take your position for granted, things can change quickly.”On the horizon Asking a trader to look towards the year ahead and predict what’s to come is never an easy question – things move at a rapid pace across financial markets at the best of time, but 2025 has certainly been a particularly lively year. For Lawrence, the main focus of his attention over the last 12 months, has been the merging and integration of the Credit Suisse Asset Management trading desk business and the centralisation of all European trading within London. For 2026, the priority will now be looking to streamline and enhance the London equities desk, whilst keeping a close eye on the markets’ irrevocable advancement in order to ensure that the team is primed to adapt quickly amid an increasingly unpredictable industry. “The next major evolution will be the full integration of AI into a desk’s processes.  “At UBS Asset Management we are already embracing this technology, but we are only at the dawn of its use. The speed at which we can fuse the workflows for traders and AI will depend on breakthroughs and innovation, and while I do not yet know what our future solutions will look like, I believe the result can only be enhancing. “I have heard concerns around the adoption of AI and what it means to human traders but I think a trading desk should welcome, not fear, its arrival. I will encourage my team to embrace it and be the architects in driving how we employ it to our advantage.” Lawrence demonstrably remains a proponent of proactively future-proofing the industry he has been part of for 25 years, and endorses a practical approach in sowing the right seeds for the next 25 years to come. “My goal for the team is to ensure we are at the forefront of industry change and early adopters of the latest technologies […] We already have a long list of improvements we want to make and I can see that list growing as we delve deeper into the various subjects.” Lawrence has ambitious plans for his team going forward and with his focus firmly on the future, he is no doubt set to continue his impressive run amid an ever-shifting landscape. Success, Lawrence explains, hinges on the ability to remain at the fore of change. “To be on the front-foot at all times; to remain curious, to ask questions and to challenge the status quo.”Access the full e-version of the Q4 2025 magazine edition here.The post UBS Asset Management’s Stuart Lawrence on challenging the status quo appeared first on The TRADE.

Societe Generale has named Gary Harper as the firm’s new head of emerging market credit trading. He joins from Absa Group, where he spent five years as head of eurobond trading. Before that Harper worked in an emerging markets credit – electronic trading role at Liquidnet. He confirmed his new role in an announcement on social media. Read more: Societe Generale promotes internally for head of global markets and head of FIC APAC Harper has also previously served at Mizuho in an executive director position, working across Turkey, South Africa, and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Prior to this, he served at Barclays as emerging markets credit flow trader director. Other roles include stints at BNP Paribas, CIBC and ING in trading roles. Societe Generale had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publishing.The post Societe Generale appoints new head of EM credit trading appeared first on The TRADE.

U.S. Bancorp has entered a definitive agreement to acquire BTIG in a transaction valued at up to $1 billion. Gunjan KediaThe new capabilities which U.S. Bancorp is set to benefit from include access to equity sales, trading and execution, prime brokerage, equity capital markets, equity derivatives, equity research, and M&A advisory, with BTIG’s leveraged finance and structured credit offerings set to be added to U.S. Bancorp’s existing products.In its acquisition summary, U.S. Bancorp highlighted in particular BTIG’s “expert, multi -asset class, equity-focused sales and trading professionals throughout the US and in Europe, Asia, and Australia, and advanced electronic trading.”The deal is expected to close in Q2 2026 and includes a targeted purchase price of $725 million, comprising $362.5 million in cash and 6,600,594 shares of USB common stock at closing, with up to $275 million in additional cash payable over three years, contingent on performance targets.“BTIG’s top talent, capabilities and technology will position us for continued capital markets growth and deeper client relationships,” said Gunjan Kedia, chief executive of U.S. Bancorp.“This acquisition will enable both organisations to deliver greater value, innovation and efficiency to the companies and institutions we serve.”U.S. Bancorp has confirmed that there is a retention plan in place. So far, it has been established that Anton LeRoy, chief executive of BTIG will remain in his position, reporting to Stephen Philipson, vice chair and head of WCIB.Additionally, Steven Starker, co-founder and executive chair of BTIG, will also remain in his client-facing role, engaging and interacting with BTIG’s largest institutional and corporate clients.Read more – Fireside Friday with… BTIG’s Stephen PonzioPhilipson described the acquisition as a “strategic move to fill key product gaps for our corporate and institutional clients, enabling us to offer a more comprehensive suite of capital markets services.”He added: “BTIG is a world-class firm with talented professionals who align with our unshakable commitment to lasting success and growth for clients […] At the same time, BTIG clients will gain access to U.S. Bancorp’s robust financial platform and extensive product set, including investment services, asset management, wealth management and payments.”The two firms have a long-standing partnership, with U.S. Bancorp clients having already benefitted from BTIG’s high-touch service and execution capabilities through the equity capital markets referral programme since 2014 and M&A advisory referral programme launched in 2023.The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals from international regulators, and FINRA.The post U.S. Bancorp set to acquire BTIG in $1 billion deal   appeared first on The TRADE.

ING has named David Leech as the firm’s new global head of FX trading, succeeding Gary Prince. Prince was made head of financial markets EMEA at ING in October 2025 – ING confirmed that Leech will report hierarchically to Prince and functionally to Niall Carton, global head of financial markets trading. In his new role, London-based Leech will take on the oversight of all ING’s FX trading activities across the world, bringing more than two decades of markets experience to his new position. The appointment marks an internal promotion for Leech, who initially joined ING in 2016 as a senior FX forwards trader, before later being promoted to head of FX UK in 2023.  Speaking about his promotion, Leech said: “I’m delighted to take on this global role and build on the strong foundations we’ve established. My focus will be on driving growth, deepening client relationships, and fostering collaboration across all regions to deliver best-in-class FX solutions.” Prior to his time at ING, Leech served as an emerging market bonds and derivatives trader at various firms, including Morgan Stanley, UBS, Royal Bank of Scotland, and ABN AMRO, where he began his industry career. Prince commented: “[Leech] has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership and market insight. His ability to combine strategic vision with operational excellence makes him the ideal choice to lead our global FX trading business into its next chapter.” The post ING names new global head of FX trading appeared first on The TRADE.

LSEG has launched Trade Surveillance – a cost-saving solution designed to assist in identifying and investigating potential market abuse and financial crime.  Liam SmithThe offering is Mifid and FX-focused and leverage’s LSEG’s own data proprietary surveillance technology – currently processing billions of trade and order messages across its venues daily. Specifically, Trade Surveillance provides clients with alerts on their private trade data, alongside contextual public market data, reference data and news to facilitate cross-venue alerts that are “designed to help reduce false positives, as well as behavioural anomaly detection capabilities that provide deeper insights into trading behaviour,” explained LSEG. Trade Surveillance for FX serves spot FX participants on the LSEG FX Dealing, Advanced Dealing, and Matching platform. It also benefits those who trade on third-party venues captured by the LSEG Trade Notification network. The offering allows clients to view their private trade data against the public spot matching orderbook. Bart Joris, head of FX sell-side trading, LSEG, said: “In a fragmented FX market, context is vital to help assess and manage regulatory risk. Trade Surveillance for FX brings together trusted data as well as activity across LSEG FX platforms and third-party venues, enabling participants to better analyse trading behaviour and make insight-based decisions efficiently.” Read more: Fireside Friday with… LSEG’s Bart Joris and Neill Penney Additionally, Trade Surveillance for Mifid is a multi-market, multi-asset solution aimed at participants who trade Mifid instruments and delivers cross-venue, cross-product alerting, enabled by LSEG’s consolidated European orderbook. According to the trading venue, the service uses the same datasets as UK and EU regulators for market abuse detection.  Liam Smith, chief operating officer, LSE and Digital & Securities Markets, LSEG, explained: “By leveraging LSEG’s proprietary technology and robust data, Trade Surveillance enables firms to strengthen compliance, reduce operational risk, and gain actionable insights into trading behaviour.” The post LSEG unveils two new trade surveillance solutions appeared first on The TRADE.