Record trade volumes at LSE

Upgraded trading platform central to improvement performance, says London Stock Exchange

LSE's financial results show record trading volume increases after new trading platform roll out

The London Stock Exchange (LSE) has hit record trading volumes after the introduction of its upgraded IT platform, according to financial results released today.

The results show average daily trading volumes in securities rose to 551,000, a 75 per cent increase over the same period last year.

New monthly records were set in every month over the summer, with daily trades exceeding one million on three separate days in August.

The record levels were facilitated by the introduction of the LSE’s TradElect trading platform in June.

The platform has significantly enhanced capacity and improved transaction speeds, enabling high trading volumes even at times of peak demand, says LSE.

Also contributing to the growth were adjustments to the volume discount scheme and the increasing success of the exchange’s electronic order book where the exchange's trades are registered.

The securities electronic order book achieved enormous volume growth over the summer, said LSE chief executive Clara Furse.

“Increased market volatility during the period added to strong growth already being facilitated by the new TradElect platform,” said Furse.

The total value of securities trading are up 47 per cent on last year to £918bn. The average trade value is down from £19,100 to £15,900.