Futures electronic trading provider Trading Technologies moves in to FX

June 20, 2023 - Trading Technologies , one of the leading platforms for futures trading, has announced the establishment of a new business unit called TT FX, to focus on foreign exchange (FX) trading. The initiative will be led by industry veteran Tomo Tokuyama. Tokuyama brings extensive experience in FX trading from both the buy side and sell side, most recently serving as the Head of Trading at a multi-billion dollar quantitative fund manager.

The announcement was made during the FIA International Derivatives Expo (IDX) in London, indicating TT's expansion into new asset classes. This move follows their acquisition of AxeTrading a leading provider of fixed income trading solutions, in March this year. 

As the head of TT FX, Tokuyama's immediate priorities include hiring talented FX industry professionals, establishing connections with major electronic communication networks (ECNs) and liquidity providers, and enhancing FX trading capabilities through TT's execution management system (EMS).

The initial phase of TT FX, expected to be implemented in late 2023, will enable TT buy-side clients to trade spot FX through selected ECNs. In early 2024, the offering will expand to include liquidity from major banks and additional FX products such as forwards, non-deliverable forwards (NDFs), and swaps.

TT CEO Keith Todd said, "We have more than 6,000 buy-side users alone on the TT platform – including hedge funds, CTAs, proprietary traders and commodity trading firms – who already trade a huge amount of FX on other systems and platforms. Following many months of outreach and research with our clients, we've heard significant positive feedback and strong demand to consolidate this activity on TT's EMS. TT FX will leverage the unparalleled global distribution capabilities of our platform, the award-winning functionality of our EMS and the widest possible choice of liquidity providers to deliver a truly best-in-class solution. We are delighted to have Tomo on board to lead this initiative for TT. He brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in this space from both the sell-side and buy-side perspectives."

Tomo Tokuyama himself shared his belief in the transformative role of technology in FX trading, "I have long believed that technology will continue to advance and shape the future of FX trading through greater focus on automation and data. I'm pleased to join a firm that not only shares that view but listens carefully to clients to deliver innovative tools and access to markets that traders and firms actually want. FX is in high demand by TT clients, and I'm excited about the opportunity to further shape the FX strategy and deliver a product that TT clients will be proud to use."

Tokuyama's experience spans over a decade at First Quadrant, LLC, where he played a significant role in transitioning the firm's FX trading from voice execution to electronic execution. He also managed various trading activities across multiple asset classes and implemented portfolio strategies. Prior to that, Tokuyama worked at Goldman Sachs in Tokyo and Hong Kong, where he contributed to the launch of electronic NDFs and first-generation FX algorithms.

Tokuyama is a frequent speaker at FX and financial services industry events and has served on numerous advisory boards, including for Best X, FX Connect, FX Hive and the TradeTech FX conferences. He earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree in management from Toronto Metropolitan University.