The Singapore Exchange (SGX) plans to launch a bond trading platform by the middle of next year.
The platform will initially trade Asian corporate bonds in G3 currencies - the United States dollar, euro and Japanese yen - with Asian local currencies to follow.
A new subsidiary, SGX Bond Trading, has been formed to drive the initiative.
SGX chief executive Magnus Bocker said yesterday: "SGX believes that in the long term, the Asian fixed-income markets are poised for strong growth, given the region's growing infrastructure needs and investor demand for steady, long-term returns."
SGX president Muthu-krishnan Ramaswami said: "Our goal is better fixed-income markets for Asian market participants and we will ensure that this venue offers many different trading approaches which are the characteristic of (over-the-counter) markets."
SGX said the aim of the platform is for it to become an Asian liquidity centre for high-yield and investment-grade corporate bonds.
A steering committee meeting was held with representatives of 32 leading Asian fixed-income dealers and investors yesterday.
The committee will provide direction and feedback on the development of services provided by SGX Bond Trading to address the needs of Asian bond market participants.
SGX has signed a long-term contract with TradingScreen to provide the platform's technology.
Steering committee member Biswaroop Tapan Barua, who is also managing director and head of fixed-income and credit products at Group Wealth Management at Standard Chartered Bank, said: "We believe that SGX's entry will make the market significantly more efficient at a time when several players are cutting back on the scale of their participation in the fixed-income markets."
This article was first published on November 27, 2014.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.