How AI Is Transforming Fixed Income Trading | Gareth Coltman, MarketAxess

How is AI changing fixed income trading, and how close are we to a world where AI agents can actually execute institutional trades? In this episode of the Capital Markets FinTech Forum, Matthew Cheung, CEO of ipushpull, speaks with Gareth Coltman, Head of Product for EMEA & APAC at MarketAxess, about the evolution of electronic fixed income markets and the growing role of AI, machine learning and automation. Gareth explains how MarketAxess has been using machine learning for more than a decade, how data is improving counterparty selection and trading decisions, and why generative and agentic AI could represent the next major shift in institutional trading. They also explore why voice trading continues to play an important role in fixed income, how firms are managing information leakage around large trades, and how AI agents are already being used across pre-trade research, analysis, simulation and post-trade workflows. The conversation also looks at one of the biggest questions facing capital markets: when will AI move from supporting human traders to actually executing trades? For now, Gareth explains why the human remains firmly in the loop — and what needs to change around governance, risk and regulation before truly agentic trading becomes a reality. Topics discussed: • AI and machine learning in fixed income • The electronification of bond markets • Data-driven counterparty selection • Voice vs electronic trading • Information leakage and large block trades • AI agents in institutional trading • Human-in-the-loop workflows • Risk, governance and regulation • The future of agentic execution • The next wave of fixed income electronification