OptAxe, a fully regulated, centralised trading venue for liquidity discovery, dissemination and execution, has announced that FX industry veteran Chris Smith is joining the management team as Chief Business Development Officer. The appointment follows OptAxe receiving FCA approval to operate an FX options MTF.
This appointment follows the recent news that OptAxe received FCA authorisation to operate as a Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF) for FX options. OptAxe solves core challenges in FX options trading by centralising liquidity to increase trading opportunities. The company’s innovative approach to axe-driven FX options trading improves efficiency, enables risk recycling and advances market intelligence for both market makers and market takers.
A key strategic hire for OptAxe, Chris Smith brings more than three decades of experience in FX markets. He has held senior positions at a variety of top-tier institutions and experienced first-hand how technology has revolutionised certain aspects of the FX industry, creating deeper more efficient markets and increasingly more sophisticated end-users. Chris has driven and championed technology-enabled platform solutions throughout his career.
Most recently, Chris served as Head of FX Sales UK and US at Commonwealth Bank. He has also been Managing Director, Hedge Fund and Real Money FX Sales at Deutsche Bank and at HSBC. Prior to that, he was a Director at Citi and Credit Suisse, responsible for Hedge Fund and Real Money FX Sales at both institutions.
Chris Smith, Chief Business Development Officer, OptAxe said:
“OptAxe brings the opportunity for change that market participants have sought for many years. By centralising FX option liquidity discovery and execution, OptAxe is providing a solution of true scale that unlocks trading opportunities and offers new market intelligence for all sides of the market.
“What’s more, I believe the OptAxe approach will lead to a more democratised market where both buy and sell-side participants are able to access liquidity in a more efficient and data-driven fashion.
“I am thrilled to be joining such a visionary team and look forward to working alongside the founders as we bring innovative technology to the marketplace that will automate manual, bilateral processes and provide a ‘single source of truth’ for FX options liquidity.”
Chris Jackson, CEO and Co-Founder of OptAxe, said:
“What we have set out to do is to bring a new approach to axe-driven FX options and empower trading participants with actionable insights from centralised liquidity information. Now that we have received our FCA licence to operate an FX options MTF, we are ready to move into our next phase of growth.
“I am delighted to welcome Chris to the OptAxe team at such an exciting time for the business. Having known Chris for many years, I have witnessed his passion for the sector and how he strategically embraces innovation to automate workflows, drive efficiencies and empower teams to focus on higher-value activities. He is an incredibly well-respected industry practitioner who has a deep understanding of industry dynamics, the evolving regulatory landscape and client needs. His experience will be invaluable and we look forward to working with him.”
In addition to Chris’s appointment, OptAxe has hired Lynsey McAllister as Head of Operations, and Dave O’Brien as a Senior Developer in the last two months. Lynsey brings comprehensive client onboarding, operations and relationship management experience to the operations role; Dave adds extensive development capabilities to the technology build-out.
OptAxe added that its platform is ready to use. All necessary technical development, connectivity and integration work is complete. OptAxe provides a range of connectivity options via Web GUI and a variety of APIs, including FIX and REST, that enable access to sources of available liquidity. Automated price and execution options offer improved trading fulfilment control, expanded counterparty opportunities and better execution analysis to all market participants.
About OptAxe
OptAxe is a regulated Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF) for FX options trading. A fully centralised venue for liquidity discovery, dissemination and execution, OptAxe lowers the cost of transacting axe-driven FX options business and enables users to unlock previously untapped trading opportunities.
With OptAxe, trading participants are empowered with actionable insights from centralised liquidity information. Whether working a sizable order, adjusting a significant position or taking a new trading view, OptAxe is specifically designed to increase axe-driven FX trading by leveraging technology to automate manual, bilateral processes to provide a ‘single source of truth’ for FX options liquidity. OptAxe sources and consolidates the best price from banks into a single platform, effectively acting as a multi-issuer, not a multi-dealer platform, RFQ-based venue.
As a regulated MTF, OptAxe satisfies all regulatory and compliance obligations associated with operating a trading venue, from technical and operational resilience to trade surveillance and transaction reporting.
