Commerzbank has joined the Singapore Server One (SG1) data centre to strengthen its foreign exchange infrastructure in Asia, allowing it to provide faster and more efficient FX trade execution in the region.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore welcomes the bank’s move to co-locate in the Equinix-run facility and “provide Asian-based participants with a wider suite of FX products and solutions”.

Commerzbank has FX trading teams in Frankfurt, London, Singapore and New York, operating a 24-hour, 5.5-day business model via a low latency network to communicate electronically across regions. It also has a capital markets team in Shanghai offering renminbi-related products and risk management.

“In a sector where microseconds count, we knew it was important to embrace this opportunity,” says Dmitry Ilyaev, global head of eFX based in Singapore. “We understand how fast-paced this growing industry is and for more than two decades we have designed and engineered our own in-house eFX applications; this has allowed us to flexibly adapt our systems to support our clients’ goals. This latest digital development for eFX in Singapore provides clients with more efficient hedging locally and simplifies access to our global FX trading expertise, liquidity and distribution.”

Jack Jiang, Singapore-based head of capital markets for Asia, adds: “We continue to look for opportunities to enhance our electronic trading franchise globally and are really pleased to become a part of the SG1 eFX ecosystem. We view Singapore as a centre of excellence for quantitative FX trading and see this as a window to widen our eFx product scope to deepen our offering to clients in the Asia region.”