The launch, the 41st market globally for Liquidnet and the ninth market in Asia Pacific, follows the company’s expansion into high-growth markets, increasing the number of investment opportunities available to more than 700 of the world’s asset management firms.

Lee Porter (pictured), head of Asia Pacific for Liquidnet, says: “Liquidnet continues to expand our network into rapidly growing markets, like the Philippines, reflecting our continuing commitment to bring Members access to opportunities that can add greater potential to increase investment performance. The Philippine economy has shown strong growth as it benefits from rising domestic demand, cuts in interest rates and ongoing government reform.”

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index rallied to a record in July and is among the best performing markets in Asia as the government announced a boost in spending and plans to seek USD16bn of investments. Since January, foreign investors have pumped more than USD2.2bn into the market, according to Bloomberg. The Philippines first quarter GDP grew 6.4 per cent, the fastest since 2010, while Standard & Poor's raised the country's debt rating to BB+, one notch below investment grade.

“There are 362 companies traded on the Philippine Stock Exchange today which increases the breadth of investment opportunities to over 85,000 securities that our members around the world can access with one click,” Porter says.

The introduction of Philippine equities on the Liquidnet’s institutional trading network follows the successful launches in Indonesia and Malaysia, which have quickly become two of the region’s most actively traded markets.