DealVector, the fixed income asset registry and communication platform, has obtained a strategic investment from Tradeweb Markets, an operator of global fixed income, derivatives and ETF marketplaces.
The alliance should help DealVector accelerate its expansion beyond leveraged loans and certain areas of structured finance and into more overseas markets.
DealVector allows issuers to locate and keep in touch with a changing investor base, facilitating the solicitation of consents and calling of securities. Investors can also locate other investors and communicate anonymously over the platform, making it easier to achieve standing to form creditor committees, block unfavorable waivers, or direct trustees to take action.
There are over 600,000 deals totaling more than $2 trillion loaded on the platform, primarily collateralized loan obligations, student loan backed securities and private label mortgage bonds, among 1,000 firms.
Tradeweb, by comparison, provides different kinds of services and operates in the largest, most liquid fixed-income markets. Yet both companies aim to be neutral platforms where their clients can interact.
"Our strategic investment demonstrates a strong joint vision to harness and enrich emerging financial technology, such as DealVector's global asset registry, with our market expertise, diverse network and robust research and development," Simon Maisey, managing director and global head of business development at Tradeweb, said in a press release.
Maisey said DealVector's "pioneering technology aligns well with our goal to deliver differentiated capabilities that provide greater transparency, efficiency and connectivity to institutional investors,"
DealVector, in turn, gets exposure to one of the largest buy side networks on the market. Tradeweb has over 2,000 institutions and 6,000 individual desks. “Each of these can benefit from the communication tools DealVector offers, as well as expand the reach of the DealVector network for all members," Mike Manning, DealVector's CEO, said in an email.
Manning said the alliance will accelerate DealVectors growth globally. Currently, about 15% of the platform’s members are outside of the U.S., mostly in Europe. Tradeweb operates in 55 countries.
Tradeweb, which has over 180 liquidity providers, will also allow DealVector to partner more closely with sell side accounts. “We envision working with these firms to develop tools allowing them to more easily source hard-to-find assets utilizing our award-winning identity-protected messaging,” Manning said.
And the investment, the size of which was not disclosed, also provides DealVector with the capital to accelerate product development efforts across its product lines.
DealVector's other backers include several Angel investors; co-founders Manning and COO Dave Jefferds are also shareholders.
