ASIC-regulated foreign exchange brokerage Vantage has expanded its service offering and trading products with the launch of Vantage Connect, a liquidity solution for institutions and corporates in the UK.
The foray into multi-asset liquidity provision is intended for a client segment that includes mid-sized hedge funds, family offices and other buy-side institutions. The broker says the move comes as part of a wider strategic push to expand the institutional side of their business in response to growing demand for bespoke trading solutions.
Vantage Connect is authorized by the UK’s financial watchdog and, upon launch, it allows institutional clients to manage volatility and leverage a liquidity pool to buy and sell complex assets.
The expansion into the B2B market comes at a time when institutional and professional traders are experiencing challenges accessing the wholesale foreign exchange price matching community via a prime brokerage model.
Vantage expects its multi-asset offering to yield a potential market opportunity. For this purpose, it strengthened the dedicated institutional desk with prime broker partnerships alongside Vantage’s in-house built risk management and its percentage allocation management module (PAMM).
Vantage Connect’s business introduces a liquidity pool offering that connects investors to multiple streams via a single venue. The company says the offering is customised depending on what the clients need from the full range of Vantage’s services, which they can easily plug into the service via an API.
The increase in banking regulation, which mandates increased minimum levels of capital and increases in reporting expenses, has resulted in a lot of banks leaving the prime broking space. The exit of legacy players in the prime brokerage space has indeed allowed new offerings to rapidly gain customers and fill the void.
David Shayer, UK CEO at Vantage, commented: “Market volatility often brings opportunities for those who know where to look, and we’ve seen the increasing volumes over the last few months. We’ve built up a strong retail solution, and now is the right time to expand to institutional investors. We have a strong team in the UK, all of whom are excited to launch the new service, that ensures that Vantage can be a trusted partner and a one-stop shop for the institutional trading community, and gives them the springboard to make the most of market opportunities.”
