Spectrum Markets, a pan-European trading venue for securitised derivatives, has now executed more than two million trades, representing a total volume of 585 million securitised derivatives traded.
This major milestone comes less than 18 months after it first launched, with Spectrum’s 24/5 trading hours continuing to prove particularly popular.
The ability for retail investors to respond quickly to global news events at any time has been a strong driver of Spectrum’s business to date, with 37.6 per cent of all trades happening outside of traditional trading hours (ie between 17:30 and 9:00 CET).
“When it comes to the demand from retail investors for out-of-hours trading, the direction of travel is very clear, and our latest numbers demonstrate this once again. Whether it is the US elections, Brexit, or unrest in Hong Kong, traders follow the news and understand the impact of 24-hour global events on financial markets, and want the option to act on that straight away,” explains Michael Hall, Head of Business Development at Spectrum Markets.
In spite of being a shorter trading month, investors were very active in February, trading 66.1 million securitised derivatives across all 21 underlyings listed on Spectrum, with the strongest beneficiary being the Scandinavian equity index OMX 30. The proportion of OMX 30 derivatives traded increased for the second time in a row to reach 36.1 percent of the monthly total trading volume, up from 31.6 per cent in January and 21.5 per cent in December.
Second and third most popular underlyings were the S&P 500 with 19.7 per cent, up on January’s 17.8 per cent, and the DAX which at 14.9 per cent dipped slightly from the previous month’s 16.8 per cent.
“It’s encouraging to build on our progressive start to the year, underlining Spectrum Markets’ growing importance as a pan-European trading platform for securitised derivatives. To hit two million trades in less than 18 months is an important milestone that is mirrored by the strong appetite and demand from financial institutions across Europe for efficient, cost-effective and innovative trading solutions for their retail customers,” adds Michael Hall.
Spectrum Markets is a pan-European marketplace where retail investors can invest in structured products via their brokers. From its launch, trading has been available in the following countries: Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Finland.
