Cboe Global Markets, Inc. has announced its definitive agreement to acquire Chi-X Asia Pacific Holdings, Ltd., an alternative market operator and provider of market solutions, from J.C. Flowers & Co. LLC.
Through the acquisition, Cboe will gain a point of entry into two key capital markets – Australia and Japan. It will help the market provider expand its global equities business into Asia Pacific, bring other products and services to the region, and further expand access to its product suite.
The acquisition is subject to regulatory review and is expected to close in the second or third quarter of 2021.
Ed Tilly, Chairman, President and CEO at Cboe Global Markets, commented:
Edward T. Tilly
With the planned acquisition of Chi-X Asia Pacific, we continue to execute on our growth strategy by broadening our geographic and asset class presence, while enabling the further extension of our product offerings to our global network of customers. This is an exciting investment in attractive, growing markets that will complement our North American and European operations and provide a foothold in the key Asia Pacific region, positioning us to become a truly global marketplace for our customers. In a short number of years, the Chi-X Asia Pacific team has built their business into one of the largest market operators in Asia Pacific. We look forward to working with them to accelerate the company’s further growth, building on our shared cultures of innovation and customer-first approach as we aim to bring greater choice to investors in Asia Pacific.
Chi-X Asia Pacific has operations in Australia and Japan. Chi-X Australia (CXA) registers 18.4% of the total market share in country and offers trading in all Australian-listed securities, as well as the exclusive trading of CXA quoted warrants and ETFs. Chi-X Japan (CXJ) accounts for 2.7% lit market share, offers four trading books including both displayed and non-displayed mechanisms.
David Howson, the current President of Cboe’s European operations, will oversee the company’s business expansion into the region. Howson has been promoted to President, Europe and Asia Pacific. He will work closely with the global Cboe team and with the Chi-X Asia Pacific local management teams with Vic Jokovic as Chief Executive Officer at Chi-X Australia and Toru Irokawa, Representative Director and President at Chi-X Japan, who will continue to lead their businesses.
Vic Jokovic said:
Over the past decade, Chi-X Australia has built an enviable reputation as an innovative market operator with superior market expertise, customer service and a pioneering spirit that strongly aligns with Cboe’s legacy of product and market innovation. We are excited to draw upon Cboe’s core strengths as a leading global exchange operator to further enhance the competitive landscape in the Australian markets with new innovation and market solutions to better meet customer needs.
Toru Irokawa added:
Chi-X Japan is currently the only broker-neutral proprietary trading system in Japan, and remains committed to delivering best execution and significant cost-savings for both retail and institutional investors through our superior services and rich set of trading solutions. With Cboe’s investment in Chi-X Japan, we look forward to enhancing our capabilities and bringing vital competition to help strengthen the efficiency and resiliency of the entire Japanese equities market.
Cboe aims to leverage Chi-X Asia Pacific’s presence in Asia Pacific and bring BIDS Trading‘s block trading capabilities to the region. BIDS’ current network covers major North American and European equities markets. The addition of Asia Pacific equities is expected to create a global block trading platform to serve a broader base of customers.
The market operator also expects the acquisition will enhance investor access to other products and services. Chi-X Asia Pacific is expected to provide an expanded distribution network allowing Cboe to further offer its products to clients in Australia and Japan.
The acquisition follows Cboe’s newly created Data and Access Solutions business, combineing the company’s Information Solutions with its global market data and access services into one holistic offering, enabling customers worldwide greater access to all of its expanded data and analytics capabilities through a unified offering.
Experienced writer and journalist, working in the global online trading sector, Steffy is the Editor of LeapRate. She has previous experience as a copywriter and has been with the company since January 2020. Steffy has a British and American Studies degree from St. Kliment Ochridski University in Sofia.
