Interbank Derivatives Market: Bloomberg Backs Bank Al-Maghrib
In a press release, Bloomberg announced its support for Bank Al-Maghrib’s (BAM) launch of the interbank derivatives market in Morocco. On February 19, 2025, BAM officially launched the interbank forward market for foreign exchange swaps and overnight indexed swaps (OIS) linked to the MONIA (Moroccan Overnight Index Average).
This initiative is part of the ongoing effort by Bank Al-Maghrib, since 2018, to deepen the foreign exchange market (see our edition No. 6954 from 20/02/2025).
To facilitate trading of currency swaps and MONIA-linked OIS, Bank Al-Maghrib selected Bloomberg’s FXGO (Foreign Exchange Electronic Trading Platform) and EBND (E-Bond) platforms as the preferred infrastructure for the Moroccan interbank derivatives market.
The deployment of the E-Bond platform for OIS trading is aimed at strengthening the Moroccan interest rate market and enhancing transparency and efficiency in interbank transactions.
Bloomberg’s FXGO platform, already in use for USD/MAD spot interbank transactions, has now been extended to support USD/MAD currency swap transactions. The adoption of a centralized electronic trading solution is aligned with the central bank’s broader strategy to deepen the foreign exchange market and help market participants better manage currency risk.
Bloomberg EBND provides a comprehensive, consolidated marketplace for Moroccan government bonds. It offers market participants a robust and flexible suite of tools for the entire trading lifecycle, under the oversight of the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Features include pre-trade price discovery and analytics, multi-dealer request-for-quote and order management, straight-through processing, and integrated trade capture and reporting tools. Moreover, it enables Bank Al-Maghrib to monitor market activity through real-time access to pricing data.
“We are delighted to roll out Bloomberg’s FXGO and EBND systems in Morocco in partnership with Bank Al-Maghrib, thereby helping to enhance transparency, liquidity, and efficiency in the Moroccan financial market,” said Nicholas Bean, Global Head of Electronic Trading at Bloomberg. He added, “We look forward to working with local market makers to enhance market infrastructure and support the development of capital markets in North Africa.”
By Fatim-Zahra TOHRY
