The race to be the top global foreign exchange broker is tight – with Citi and Deutsche Bank at the top of the leaderboard. But their lead is shrinking as rivals UBS and Barclays are gaining ground – fast.
In its latest report, “the 2015 Greenwich Share Leaders in Global Top-Tier Foreign Exchange Market Share,” Greenwich Associates, a capital markets consultancy, noted that the two firms are deadlocked atop the global FX market, with market shares in trading of 11.6-11.7%. Close behind are UBS and Barclay, both of whom are tied with market shares of 10.0-10.2%. J.P. Morgan rounds out the global top 5 with a market share of 7.4%.
While Citi and Deutsche remain far ahead, J.P. Morgan stood out in 2014 for gaining market share, a feat that narrowed the gap between the bank and the four traditional global FX leaders. Citi was also notable for maintaining stable market share from year to year. Bank of America Merrill Lynch posted the largest gain in market share this year. BNP Paribas and Goldman Sachs also gained meaningful share.
“With market shares trending lower among the world’s largest FX dealers, stable is the new up,” said Greenwich Associates consultant Tim Sangston.
Reduced Concentration with Leading Dealers
Financial institutions and companies reduced the share of their FX trading volume executed through the world’s leading FX dealers last year, Greenwich noted.
“In the current environment, a less concentrated FX market might actually be welcomed by some of the world’s biggest FX dealers,” the report said. “Meanwhile, the movement of trading volumes to electronic, multi-dealer trading platforms is making it easier for customers to spread their business more widely among dealers.”
Greenwich Quality Leaders
As part of its annual Global Foreign Exchange Services Study, Greenwich Associates asked participants to rate the dealers they use in a series of product and service categories. Firms receiving customer ratings that top those awarded to competitors by a statistically significant margin are named Greenwich Quality Leaders. For 2015, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Citi took top honors.
