A major step towards unifying Europe's fragmented bond market data is on the horizon. A consortium of leading exchange groups, including Deutsche Börse and Euronext, has announced plans to launch a consolidated tape for bonds in July 2025.
A Consortium of Market Heavyweights
The initiative is being spearheaded by a group named CTP, or the Consolidated Tape Provider. This entity is a joint venture between MarketAxess and Liquidnet, which together operate the BondVision platform. Crucially, the venture has secured the backing of several of Europe's largest exchange operators as anchor clients.
These backers include Deutsche Börse, Euronext, Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME), and Wiener Börse. Their commitment to contribute data is seen as a critical factor in ensuring the tape's success and comprehensiveness from day one.
The Path to a July 2025 Launch
The planned launch date is set for July 2025. This timeline follows the consortium's recent submission of its application to the relevant regulatory authorities. The group is now awaiting formal approval, a process that is expected to be completed in the coming months.
The creation of a consolidated tape is a central pillar of the European Union's MiFID II financial markets reforms. The goal is to aggregate post-trade data from multiple trading venues into a single, reliable, and real-time stream. For the bond market, which is predominantly traded over-the-counter, this promises unprecedented levels of price transparency.
Implications for the European Financial Landscape
The introduction of a bond consolidated tape is anticipated to have significant consequences. Primarily, it will provide investors, from large asset managers to smaller institutions, with a clearer view of market pricing and liquidity. This should lead to better execution and potentially lower costs for end investors.
Furthermore, a successful tape for bonds is likely to pave the way for a similar solution for equities, a market where previous attempts have stalled. The involvement of major incumbent exchanges in this bond tape venture is a strong signal of industry alignment, which has been lacking in earlier equity tape proposals.
Brian Schwieger, Head of Fixed Income at Liquidnet, emphasised the importance of the anchor clients, stating their participation ensures the tape will launch with high-quality, comprehensive data coverage. This addresses a key concern that plagued earlier consolidated tape efforts, which struggled with incomplete information.
The move represents a concerted effort by established market players to shape the future of European financial data infrastructure, rather than leaving the field open to newer entrants or facing a solution imposed by regulators.
