Tradeweb and MarketAxess Post Strong January Volumes as Institutional Trading Activity Rises

​Tradeweb Markets and MarketAxess both reported elevated trading activity in January, reflecting increased institutional participation across rates and credit markets.

Tradeweb said total trading volume reached $65.5 trillion for the month, with average daily volume (ADV) of $3.1 trillion, representing a 26.2% increase from a year earlier. Growth was broad-based across asset classes, with particular strength in credit, government bonds, and interest rate derivatives.

MarketAxess reported record average daily volume of $18.6 billion in total credit, up 28% year-over-year. Total platform ADV reached $47.7 billion, a 23% increase, supported by a 19% rise in the company’s rates business.

“In January, we delivered 28% growth year-over-year in total credit on record ADV of $18.6 billion, and 19% growth in total rates,” said Chris Concannon, chief executive of MarketAxess. He added that emerging markets credit ADV increased 50% to a record $5.5 billion, nearly 30% above the previous monthly high.

Credit trading was a key contributor for both platforms. Tradeweb’s fully electronic U.S. credit ADV rose 24.4% to $9.4 billion, while European credit ADV increased 44% to $3.5 billion. The company reported capturing 17.5% of fully electronic U.S. high-grade TRACE market share and 7.1% in high-yield TRACE.

MarketAxess posted U.S. high-grade ADV of $8.4 billion, up 20% from a year earlier. Within emerging markets, hard currency volumes increased 28%, while local market volumes climbed 94%.

Rates activity also accelerated amid ongoing policy uncertainty and shifting inflation expectations. Tradeweb reported U.S. government bond ADV of $267.7 billion, up 15.3% year-over-year, while European government volumes rose 36% to $79.4 billion. On the derivatives side, swaps and swaptions with maturities of one year or longer increased 34.6% to $591 billion in daily volume, and total rates derivatives ADV rose 51.1% to $1.2 trillion.

Mortgage trading on Tradeweb reached a record level, with ADV rising 16.7% to $310.1 billion.

MarketAxess also pointed to strong growth in newer trading protocols. Block trading ADV increased 56% from a year earlier, portfolio trading volumes rose 126% to $2 billion in daily volume, and dealer-initiated activity climbed 13% to $1.8 billion. Mid-X trading volume reached a record $6.9 billion.

The January results suggest electronic trading venues continue to gain share from traditional voice-based execution, particularly in credit and emerging market products, as institutional participants adjust to evolving market conditions.