Spot FX volumes drop +10% at CLS in August 2023
Total daily traded volume submitted to CLS for settlement took a step back in August as the summer typical lull hit market activity. The metrics showed a weak performance in the group’s FX business as the Q3 got off to a calm end while no fresh events were able to whip up a market frenzy.
The average daily traded volume submitted to CLS was $1.90 trillion in August 2023, which is down four percent month-over-month from $1.98 trillion in July 2023. Across a yearly timetable, the figure was up 7.3 percent relative to $1.77 trillion in August 2022.
CLS reported swaps volumes at $1.28 trillion in August 2023, which was the same it booked in July 2023. Additionally, the figure was up 5 percent on a yearly basis from $1.22 trillion.
In terms of CLS’ spot FX volume, the group has reported the figure at $439 billion in August 2023, which is down 11 percent relative to $491 billion in the month prior. The spot turnover was also higher by 2.1 percent over a yearly basis from the $430 billion set in 2022.
CLS forwards business yielded a figure of $182 billion last month, down 15.3 percent from $215 billion the previous month. The figure was higher by 54 percent over a yearly basis from the $118 billion reported in the same month a year ago.
“In August 2023, we saw average daily traded volumes of USD1.9 trillion, an increase of 7% compared to August 2022. Over the same period, we saw an increase in overall volumes across all instruments. FX forward volumes were up noticeably by 54%, with FX spot and FX swap volumes up by 2.1% and 4.3%, respectively,” said CLS’s Global Head of Product, Keith Tippell.
CLS Group, which provides risk mitigation and settlement services for FX dealers and institutions, has recently onboarded Germany’s biggest lender, Deutsche Bank, to CLSNet, the foreign exchange bilateral payment netting system for emerging currencies.
CLSNet service covers approximately 120 currencies and DB is joining its growing community of global and regional financial services institutions, which includes eight of the top 12 global banks. The centralized platform was originally built with IBM using the Hyperledger Fabric enterprise blockchain.
