A Closer Look: Barclays’ Nas Al-Khudairi on the Recently Launched BARX Book for Equities Platform

Recently, Barclays launched BARX Book for Equities, a new Single-Dealer Platform (SDP) developed in partnership with Nasdaq.

Hosted by Nasdaq on its leading market technology infrastructure, Nasdaq Execution Platform, BARX Book for Equities provides institutional clients access to the bank’s unique, principal liquidity for U.S.-listed single names and exchange-traded funds, and is Barclays’ most recent innovation for equities within BARX, the firm’s multi-asset electronic trading platform.

We spoke with Nas Al-Khudairi, Global Head of Markets Electronic Trading and Digital Strategy at Barclays, on this exciting, new venture.

1. You recently announced the launch of BARX Book for Equities, a new Single Dealer Platform, developed in partnership with Nasdaq. Can you tell us about BARX? How did it come to life, and what is your mission?

Last year, Barclays announced that BARX would become our newly integrated, cross-asset electronic trading platform. Equities are the latest asset class to be integrated into the BARX brand.

Using BARX, our institutional clients are able to trade more efficiently and effectively, stay aligned with their investment strategies and keep pace with the evolving electronic ecosystem.

We are now continuing to build upon BARX’s legacy of innovation by harnessing the full power of the platform to create even more advanced trading solutions in collaboration with clients. Our aim is to ensure that BARX is a leading liquidity provider that can deliver competitive pricing and the simplest means of execution across a broad range of products.

2. BARX Book for Equities represents a new chapter in Barclays’ client liquidity strategy. Can you explain how this move is helping Barclays to differentiate? 

When we set out to build BARX Book for Equities, we were determined to differentiate by offering a comprehensive solution that would allow clients to have the flexibility to trade anonymously with Barclays’ principal liquidity while utilizing a number of order types and functionalities typically not available in other single dealer platforms. These functionalities include Conditionals and Pegged orders and our unique Additional Liquidity IOC order type. BARX Book is also the first single dealer platform to be hosted on Nasdaq Execution Platform.

3. The BARX platform offers a user-centric design. What does this mean for Barclays clients?

Clients have the power to completely control their trading experience when accessing Barclays’ principal liquidity through BARX Book. Historically, when clients wanted to access principal liquidity electronically, they would do so using one of our CapComm algorithms, where the algorithm would control the order placement logic. 

Now with BARX Book and our new BARX Book tactic, clients can choose which order type to use and where within the NBBO they would like to trade, in addition to whether or not they would like to disclose their order details or remain anonymous. Barclays’ clients now have access to more enhanced functionality and order types when accessing our principal liquidity either through the BARX Book API or the new BARX Book tactic. 

4. What excites you about the future, and is there anything forward-looking that you can share with our audience?

We are excited about our continuing partnership and collaboration, as it is not often that you get the opportunity to design, build and launch a new innovative trading solution with a global leader like Nasdaq.

The positive feedback that we have received from our clients on BARX Book has validated our decision to build a single dealer platform with enhanced order types, client disclosure functionalities and transparency. We are thrilled about the opportunity and are looking forward to rolling out new enhanced order types in early 2021.

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