FT Alphaville reports: Swapstream, the electronic trading platform for interest rate swaps, is poised to launch a new system designed to target hedge fund customers.
The UK-based company, which was bought by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange last year, currently has a platform for dealers only. It will add dollar and sterling swaps to its existing euro and Swiss franc offerings because hedge funds prefer a single platform on which they can execute broad trading strategies.
The move highlights the growing influence of hedge fund traders in markets for all kinds of derivatives.
It is also a sign that exchanges, such as CME, are making efforts to bring their trade processing and technological resources to bear on the huge global market for privately traded, or OTC, derivatives.