The Foreign Exchange and Over-the-Counter Derivatives Markets in the United Kingdom

Abstract

In April this year, the Bank of England conducted the three-yearly survey of turnover in the UK foreign exchange and over-the-counter (OTC) currency and interest rate derivatives markets, as part of the latest worldwide survey co-ordinated by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). The results show that the volume of foreign exchange activity in the United Kingdom has increased by nearly 50% since April 2001. Turnover in OTC derivatives has more than doubled in the same period. This article presents the main results of the UK survey and highlights the effects of developments in foreign exchange and OTC derivatives markets on volumes of activity. It also provides detailed breakdowns of UK survey data and a comparison with global survey results.