Shining a light on the dollar repo market

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The US dollar repo market sits at the core of the global financial system. It underpins liquidity in US Treasuries, shapes short-term dollar funding conditions and transmits US Federal Reserve policy into money markets. Yet, for all its scale and systemic importance, transparency in US dollar repo remains limited.

Featuring expert commentary and exclusive survey data, this Risk.net and Parameta report reveals where market participants still face blind spots – and why timeliness of insight is now the defining competitive edge.

Among the key findings are:

• Only 12% of respondents view US dollar repo pricing and volumes as very transparent, highlighting persistent structural opacity
• 65% cite the lack of real-time rate information as the single biggest transparency challenge, directly impacting funding decisions
• 46% say they are frequently or almost always at an informational disadvantage versus peers – exposing widespread data asymmetry.

The results suggest that, when stress builds, participants are still flying partly blind – reliant on relationships, judgement and backward-looking indicators. In a market this large and this central, that is an uncomfortable reality. Better transparency will not eliminate repo volatility. But it could make funding pressures less abrupt, less destabilising and easier to manage.

As Tin Lau, chief risk and compliance officer at Mirae Asset Securities (UK), puts it: “Repo remains a high-touch business. You can automate the operational mechanics, but understanding who you’re dealing with and what sits behind a transaction still relies heavily on relationships and judgement.”

This report makes essential reading for repo traders, treasury and liquidity managers, collateral specialists, risk leaders and market structure professionals across the buy and sell sides.

Download the report to discover where hidden funding risks may be building – and how faster, more holistic repo intelligence could sharpen decision-making before the next bout of market stress.

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