LMAX Group Acquires Cürex

LMAX Group says it has entered into an agreement to acquire the FX business of Cürex, a move the firm says will create a stronger, more diversified, institutional FX offering that includes execution venues, precise market data and trade analytics.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, however industry sources says the price was unlikely to be on the scale of other transactions in the industry – including the sale of a stake in LMAX itself to JC Flowers in 2021.

The two firms have one important aspect in common in terms of their FX execution venues, both operate without last look. The Cürex platform offers a central limit order book that supports bank algo, it also has a peer-to-peer offering and a pre- and post-trade analytics platform. The firm has never published FX volumes, and while it has been established since 2009, market sources say it struggled to build on its initial traction in the industry.

The deal does offer LMAX a path into what is likely to be a complimentary buy side client base, Cürex is believed to have made some inroads into the asset manager space, while LMAX’ client base has historically been driven by banks and non-bank trading firms, as well as broker-dealers.

LMAX Group says the deal will accelerate its growth in the US, strengthening its technical capabilities and customer and liquidity relationships in a core market. For Cürex, it says the transaction provides the scale and technical expertise for continued growth, along with a foothold to enter Asia and expand its liquidity pools through LMAX Group’s established operations and connectivity via its matching engines in Singapore and Tokyo.

“Cürex and LMAX Group share a common ethos of delivering transparent price discovery and efficient market structure through firm liquidity and no ‘Last Look’ execution,” says David Mercer, CEO of LMAX Group. “We are constantly exploring ways to expand our product offering and diversify distribution for the institutional segment. We believe that through this acquisition, our combined client base will benefit from a more diversified array of FX solutions as we continue to invest in our technology, people and product development.”

James Singleton, CEO of Cürex, adds, “LMAX Group is the right business to take Cürex into the next stage of its evolution and start a new phase of growth. After more than a decade of building Cürex, I will be leaving the business, following completion of the acquisition. It has been a privilege to serve in this role and I have no doubt that the combined organisations can achieve great success together under the leadership of LMAX Group.”