SGX woos European traders with new futures window

[SINGAPORE] The Singapore Exchange (SGX) is aiming to make it easier for European investors to trade Asian bonds during their working day.

For money managers in Europe, getting the best prices usually means trading in the early hours of the morning, or having staff on the ground in Asia.

Starting from Tuesday (Oct 13), they will be able to use SGX’s new one-hour “liquidity window” that aims to boost activity from market makers and asset managers later in the Asian trading day.

The window will open at 10 am London time – 5 pm in Singapore – as part of SGX’s push to build volumes in its bond futures.

The exchange has struggled to broaden its rates franchise beyond its fast-growing Japanese government bond futures.

Trading volumes in all of its new Asia-Pacific contracts, bar India, were at zero through August, underscoring the challenge of building offshore liquidity in Asian bonds.

William Chin, head of rates and derivatives at SGX, said: “There is a massive appetite in Europe to trade these markets. They don’t want to be working crazy hours, or have to relocate teams to Asia permanently.”

SGX launched government bond futures for India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines earlier in 2026, alongside 20-year Japanese futures.

The expansion came amid increased investor interest in the region, following Japan’s interest-rate hikes and an uptick in volatility in Asian markets.

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In addition to the European initiative, the exchange will also open a liquidity window for Indian investors from Tuesday, running from 11 am to 12.30 pm Singapore time, he said.

The initiatives aim to tackle a longstanding problem of asset managers not trading without visible pricing, while market makers hesitate to commit capital without enough demand.

By “concentrating eyeballs” into set trading periods rather than requiring round-the-clock attention, Chin said SGX hopes to “break that chicken-and-egg cycle”. BLOOMBERG