By Tristan Broderick of the Bank's Monetary and Financial Statistics Division and Chris Cox of the Bank's Foreign Exchange Division.
In April this year, the Bank of England conducted its usual three-yearly survey of turnover in the United Kingdom's foreign exchange and over-the-counter (OTC) interest rate derivatives markets. This forms part of the latest worldwide survey co-ordinated by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). The results show that the value of foreign exchange activity in the United Kingdom rose by one quarter between April 2007 and April 2010, increasing the UK share of the global market to 37%. Turnover in OTC interest rate derivatives also rose considerably over the same period. This report sets out the results of the UK survey, and then considers the potential underlying drivers in these markets over the past three years.
The foreign exchange and over-the-counter interest rate derivatives markets in the United Kingdom