Vontobel now on SLS to extend access to additional Liquidity in Swiss- and European-Stocks for customers

Vontobel has joined the SLS trading service offered by SIX Swiss Exchange and Liquidnet in a move that will allow its clients to access Europe’s biggest pool of buy-side block liquidity, so decreasing the market impact and reducing trading costs.

Vontobel already has a state-of-the-art global trading infrastructure. The search for best prices and liquidity are key success factors, and require both innovation and appropriate technology. Trading venue fragmentation has heightened complexity, and coupled with regulatory pressures and the evolving market structure in Europe, this is driving demand for block trading solutions.

Launched in 2011, SLS is provided as part of a well-established partnership by SIX Swiss Exchange and Liquidnet. The service gives members access to Europe’s biggest and best developed pool of block liquidity, where they can route committed orders across 13 European markets.
This allows SIX Swiss Exchange participants to connect to a community of more than 830 buy-side institutions that actively trade some 3,100 shares of all capitalizations, both in Switzerland and in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and the UK. They can also use the service via their existing connection, at no additional cost and without the need for further contractual arrangements. Besides offering beneficial average execution sizes, SLS is the only service of its kind in Europe that takes place in a regulated exchange environment.

Large block orders can thus be traded efficiently, with all trades being executed at the mid price on the primary exchange. Given the unique facets of the SLS service, ensuring the utmost benefit for trading participants of finding liquidity hinges on smart interaction. Time invested here pays off in larger sizes, while longer resting periods deliver greater spreads and market impact savings.

Gregor Braun, Head Product Sales at SIX Swiss Exchange, commented: “We are happy that Vontobel has decided to join SLS and is now able to enjoy the improved prices and minimal market impact our service offers.”

Peter Camenzind, Head of Transaction Banking at Vontobel, added: “The steady increase in non-displayed trading across Europe has bolstered demand from our clients. By joining SLS, we can offer them access to genuine block liquidity. Vontobel’s expansion into this additional pool of liquidity gives our clients further access to block volume, while providing additional and direct access to more than 16 European markets.

Vontobel Investment Banking
Vontobel Investment Banking provides customized investment solutions for clients and external asset managers. It is one of the leading issuers of structured products in Switzerland and Europe and has a presence in Asia. Its award-winning research and its expertise in corporate finance, as well as the securities services provided by Transaction Banking, complete its offering. Investment Banking is also a global leader in the digitalization of investment solutions.

Vontobel Investment Banking is one of Vontobel’s three divisions – together with Private Banking and Asset Management – whose mission is to protect and build the wealth clients have entrusted to them over the long term. In doing so, Vontobel is committed to Swiss quality and performance standards. With their good name, the owner families have stood by these principles for generations. The registered shares of Vontobel Holding AG are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. The Vontobel families and the Vontobel Foundation hold the majority of shares and votes in the company.

About SIX Swiss Exchange
SIX Swiss Exchange is one of the leading exchanges in Europe. It connects companies from around the world with international investors and trading participants. It creates particularly market-oriented framework conditions for listing and trading in its highly liquid segments. SIX Swiss Exchange multiplies the locational advantages of the Swiss financial marketplace with first-rate services and is an ideal listing location. It distributes its own range of indices, including Switzerland’s most important blue-chip index SMI®. With the world’s most advanced trading technology X-stream INET it offers excellent trading conditions.
www.six-swiss-exchange.com

SIX operates the infrastructure underpinning the Swiss financial sector and offers a comprehensive range of services around the world in the fields of securities trading and settlement, financial information and payment transactions. The company is owned by its users (approximately 130 banks of various orientation and size). Its workforce of over 4,000 employees and presence in 25 countries throughout the world generated operating income of CHF 1.8 billion and a Group net profit of CHF 221.1 million in 2016.
www.six-group.com

Legal information This press release is intended solely for information purposes. The information and views contained in it do not constitute a request, offer or recommendation to use a service, to buy or sell investment instruments or to conduct other transactions. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that predictions, forecasts, projections and other outcomes described or implied in forward-looking statements will not be achieved.