JAPAN: TSE Begins Development of ETF RFQ Trading Platform CONNEQTOR

Monday May 4 2020

On 30^th April 2020, the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) announced the development of ETF RFQ Trading Platform “CONNEQTOR” for Market Use.

The Aim and Features of the RFQ function are below:

Faster and Cheaper:
ETFs are products that investors can use to trade not only Japanese stock indices, but also foreign stocks, bonds, and commodities. By providing an RFQ function, TSE aims to facilitate easy access to world-class liquidity and pricing for Japanese institutional investors so that ETFs can be traded “faster and cheaper” in Japan.

No Usage Fees:
Both initial and monthly fees are free, so that even institutional investors who trade less often such as banks and regional financial institutions can use the platform. They charge a trading fee (commission) to securities companies only when a transaction is executed.

Outline of RFQ Function:
The RFQ function enables institutional investors who want to trade a particular ETF at a particular quantity, etc. to send out a request for a quote to a large number of market makers. They can then trade at a price individually offered by a market maker. In CONNEQTOR, although the quotes are shown anonymously, the process is highly transparent, and investors can trade only at the best price offered.

Click on the above link for further information.