RBC holds off Canadian fixed income rivals

RBC Capital Markets is widening it lead over rival firms in Canadian fixed income by investing in both technology and the human touch, according to rankings from Greenwich Associates published on Tuesday.

The Stamford, Conn.-based research firm says RBC continues to lead in market share in the domestic fixed income business, followed by TD Securities, BMO Capital Markets, CIBC World Markets and Scotiabank.

RBC also rates as a leader in each of the four categories Greenwich evaluates: research; sales; trading and overall.

BMO ranks as a leader in research, sales, and overall, and TD is rated as a leader in fixed income sales and overall rankings.

“Over the past 12 months, all the leading Canadian fixed-income dealers have upped their game, and in response, RBC has also significantly upgraded its platform,” says Peter Kane, consultant at Greenwich, in a statement.

According to Greenwich, RBC has “invested heavily” in technology for its fixed income business, including its trading and other client-facing platforms, along with its internal CRM systems. It has also, “seemingly mastered the art of recruiting a young pool of talent and training them to deliver high quality service,” the firm says.

Along with RBC, Greenwich also notes that TD in particular is, “showing significant momentum by stepping up its performance in rates products while maintaining its already highly rated franchise in credit.”

“CIBC also deserves recognition for notching impressive gains in market share and quality ratings across sales and trading over the past 12 months,” adds Kane.

Greenwich also singles out Montreal-based Casgrain & Co. Ltd. as a small firm that deserves recognition, “due to its proficiency in provincial bonds”.

The rankings are based on Greenwich’s surveys of Canadian institutional investors.

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