ISDA is expanding its SwapsInfo dataset to include European credit derivatives trading activity, complementing existing research on credit default swaps (CDS) trading in the US. This addition provides a more comprehensive view of global market trends, offering valuable insights into trading activity across key jurisdictions.

Analysis from the second half of 2021 to the end of 2024 shows that the UK dominated European CDS trading, accounting for 70%-80% of total traded notional, including both index and single-name CDS, while the EU represented 20%-30%. On a global scale, about 30% of CDS trading was reported in the UK, 10% was reported in the EU and 50%-60% was reported in the US. European single-name CDS activity was concentrated in the UK, which accounted for over 96% of total traded notional. The share reported in the EU ranged between 0.5% and 4.0%. Globally, trading in single-name CDS was evenly split between the US and UK, with the EU representing less than 3%.

The analysis is based on transactions publicly reported by 18 European approved publication arrangements (APAs) and trading venues (TVs).

Click on the attached PDF to read the full report.