EBS Sets October for NDF Switch

CME Group has announced in a notice that EBS NDF trading will move to a single liquidity pool in October, a move CME says will drive trading and operational efficiencies for the FX market.

The move, which was announced at the end of 2023 and scheduled for late 2024, will consolidate the current two pools of NDF trading (on-SEF/on-MTF and off-SEF/on-MTF) into a single liquidity pool on the EBS UK MTF, operated by BrokerTec Europe Limited. The change remains subject to regulatory approval, and CME says it provide more information on the changeover, including onboarding information for US customers transitioning to the EBS UK MTF, in the coming months.

US clients have able to access the EBS UK MTF as a Prime customer trading in the name of and on behalf of a prime bank which is not a US client, since the start of 2024. This follows the standard EBS Prime model, where a participant will need to contract with both BrokerTec Europe Limited for access to the EBS UK MTF and their designated prime bank(s).

The moves come amid increasing competition in the NDF multi-dealer platform market, although EBS does not publish NDF volumes, it is understood to be the busiest CLOB in the market by some distance. Over the past two years, however, platforms such as 24 Exchange and Cboe SEF have reported significand NDF volume gains, as has 360T, which mainly operates a disclosed, relationship-based model.