Introduction

The foreign exchange market is the world's largest and most liquid financial marketrecording a daily turnover of approximately USD 9 500bn in 2025 [1]. By comparisonforeign exchange turnover amounted to over 30 times daily global GDP.

An efficient and liquid foreign exchange market is of great importance to the global economy and for well-functioning financial markets. It facilitates cross-border transactions linked to the trade of goods and servicesforeign investment and lending and transactions linked to hedging and speculation. Norges Bank has signed the FX Global Codewhich promotes a well-functioning foreign exchange market.

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) conducts a triennial survey on turnover in the foreign exchange marketwhere trading largely occurs bilaterally[2]. The survey is widely regarded as the most comprehensive overview of activity and developments in the foreign exchange market. See Annex for more detailed information regarding the survey.  

This year's report takes a closer look at developments in local and cross-border NOK trading and in totalie global NOK turnover. In additionthe report will also cover all foreign exchange trades transacted in Norwayas well as the global interest rate derivatives turnover in NOK. Reporting banks in the BIS survey provide figures in USDwhich is the unit of measurement in this report.[3]

Global NOK turnover remained stable in April 2025 compared with the previous BIS survey in 2022. This contrasts with overall turnover in the global foreign exchange marketwhich has risen markedly. While foreign exchange swaps in NOK continue to be the instrument with the largest turnoverthe share of spot and forward contracts has risen. Most trades in NOK is cross-border without the involvement of a Norwegian reporting bank. The most traded currency pair is USD/NOK followed by EUR/NOK. Figures indicate that the NOK market is becoming increasingly electronic and that financial institutionsincluding the largest banksaccount for most turnover.

Global NOK turnover

Global NOK turnover covers all local and cross-border purchases and sales of NOKie the figures cover a transaction in NOK regardless of whether it was traded in Trondheim or Singapore.

NOK turnover is little changed

In April 2025daily global NOK turnover amounted to the equivalent of around USD 127bn (Chart 1)roughly the same level as in 2022. This development deviated from global foreign exchange turnoverwhich increased by almost 30%reflecting a continued trend in recent years. According to the BIShigher turnover in the 2025 survey reflects foreign exchange market volatility following the implementation of new trade barriers between many of the world's leading economies.

Global NOK turnover accounted for a total of 1.3% [4] of global foreign exchange turnoverdown from 1.7% in 2022. By comparisonthe share of SEK and DKK accounted for 1.6% and 0.7% of global foreign exchange turnover in the 2025 survey.  

Chart 1: Daily NOK turnover in April 2025. Global. By instrument. In billions of USD

Higher spot and forward turnover

Foreign exchange is traded using different instruments that are characterised by transaction timingie when the trade is settled and the currencies are exchanged between the partiesand instrument structure. Spot trades are settled in the near termtypically within one or two business days. An FX forward contract is settled in the longer termeg in one month. An example of a structured product is a foreign exchange swap (FX swap)as the agreement involves simultaneously exchanging currencies at the spot rate to then reverse the exchange at a later date at the forward rate. Currency swaps [5] share many similarities with foreign exchange swaps but often have a considerably longer maturity. An FX option gives the buyer the rightbut not the obligationto exchange currencies if a specific condition is satisfied.  

Global NOK turnover in forward contracts has doubled since 2022 to roughly USD 29bn per day (Chart 1). The turnover in spot trades also rose compared to 2022. Spot turnover increased by 17% to USD 42bn a day. Higher spot and forward turnover in NOK may reflect the greater need of different financial institutions to adjust their foreign exchange exposureespecially against USDdue to increased financial market volatility. [6]

According to our market contactssome Norwegian exporters hedged their foreign currency revenues when USD strengthened against NOK at the beginning of April. In April 2025turnover in spot and forward markets accounted for 33% and 23% of global NOK turnoverrespectively.

FX swap transactions in NOK amounted to USD 50bn per day in April 2025. Although turnover was lower than in 2022the volume is in line with previous years. As a share of total turnover in 2025FX swap trading fell to 40%. According to our market contactsthis may reflect market participants entering into foreign exchange swaps with somewhat longer maturities than usual.

Financial institutions continue to account for the vast majority of NOK turnover

Figures for global NOK turnover have long shown that larger banks [7]  account for an increasing share of activity (Chart 2). This was particularly clear in the 2022 surveywhen trades between large banks accounted for as much as half of all NOK turnover. Even though this share declined somewhat in the 2025 surveyit remains high. Howeverthe turnover of larger banks compared with other financial institutions accounts for 95% of total turnoverreflecting a trend in which the turnover of financial institutions has increased at the expense of non-financial customers.  

Chart 2: Daily turnover in NOK. Global. By counterparty. In billions of USD

USD accounts for the largest share of global turnover in NOK

The USD share of foreign exchange turnover in NOK accounts for as much as 67% of total NOK turnover. One reason that USD/NOK has become the most traded currency pair over time is that the US foreign exchange swap market is an important source of funding for Norwegian banks and a common investment option for Norwegian asset managers. EUR/NOK is the second most traded currency pairaccounting for 25% of global NOK turnover. USD and EUR account for 54% and 36% in the NOK spot marketand 71% and 20% in the forward marketrespectively.

Higher turnover in the NOK interest rate derivatives market

Unlike in the foreign exchange marketinstruments in the interest rate derivatives market are only traded in a single currency. Forward rate agreements (FRA) in NOK are fixed rate agreements for specific periods in the futureoften from one quarter to another. Interest rate swaps (IRS) are fixed-for-floating rate swap agreements that last between one day and multiple years. These instruments are reported as "other swaps" from 2019when gathering turnover in so-called overnight indexed swaps (OIS) commenced. OIS agreements are also fixed rate agreements with longer maturities in exchange for a compounded floating overnight rate. Options oneg an IRSmay be exercised if a rate level has been reached within an agreed timeframe.

Chart 3 shows global turnover developments in NOK-denominated interest rate derivatives. Daily turnover in this market has varied between USD 20bn and 30bn over the past three years and was around USD 28bn in 2025. This is almost 30% higher than in April 2022. Interest rate swaps remain the most common instrument. Following the transition to alternative reference rates in a number of marketsOIS contracts now account for a larger share of turnover. Todaythis share is just under 20%which is substantially higher than in previous surveys. In April 2025the daily global turnover in NOK-denominated OIS contracts amounted to around USD 6bnor approximately NOK 62bn. While the use of OIS contracts has increasedturnover among other IRS contracts has fallen somewhat.

Cross-border turnover in NOK-denominated interest rate derivatives remains highest outside of Norway. Howeverthe share in Norway has risen from around 23% to now almost 40%.

Chart 4 shows turnover by counterparty. The relative size of reporting banks and other financial institutions has varied over time. In April 2025the share of other financial institutions continued to increase to almost 85%while turnover linked to reporting banks only accounted for around 10%. Compared with turnover in interest rate derivatives across all currenciesa similar trend can be observed where other financial institutions account for a larger market share. Non-financials have generally accounted for the lowest turnover among survey participants and in the 2025 surveythey accounted for around 5%.

Chart 3: Daily turnover in interest rate derivatives in NOK. Global. By instrument. In billions of USD

 

Chart 4: Daily turnover in interest rate derivatives in NOK. Global. By counterparty. In billions of USD

Local NOK turnover

Local NOK turnover refers to trades in which at least one of the counterparties is a reporting dealer with a presence in Norway. As in previous surveysthis turnover is characterised by the fact that only a few reporting dealers account for a relatively large share.

Slightly lower local NOK turnover

Local NOK turnover fell slightly compared with the 2022 survey (Chart 5). Turnover levels in the past three surveys have nevertheless been relatively stable. As discussed in connection with the global NOK trading figuresturnover in the foreign exchange swap market is by far the highestfollowed by turnover in spot and forward markets.[8] The local market for NOK options and currency swaps is small.

Transactions in the spot marketand for FX forwards in NOKeach only account for 4% of global NOK turnoverimplying that only one in twelve spot and forward NOK transactions reported to the BIS involves a local counterparty. This ratio has remained relatively stable in recent surveys. In the NOK FX swap marketthe share reported locally is somewhat higherat 13%.

Chart 5: Daily turnover in NOK. Norway. By instrument. In billions of USD

Electronic trading dominates in the spot market

The survey also addresses how Norwegian reporting dealers have conducted their NOK trades. Over timethe trend has been that spot market turnover has become increasingly electronicwith counterparties in the Norwegian market appearing to adopt an expanding range of electronic tools and platforms to access spot liquidity. The survey indicates that around 80% of spot trades in April this year were executed electronicallyup from about 40% in 2010when such figures were first reported. In contrasttrading in the forward market remains largely ‘manual’with roughly half of trades still concluded via voice.[9] This was a comparatively higher share than in 2022 and 2019. Some market contacts suggest that this may be attributable to increased derivatives market volatilitywhich made it more natural to execute forward trades manually rather than electronically.  

Cross-border NOK trades

The BIS survey shows that nine out of ten trades in NOK are cross-bordermeaning that no Norwegian reporting dealer is involved in the transaction. "Cross-border" here denotes transactions reported by a reporting dealer located outside Norway. For instanceif a Norwegian exporter enters into an FX trade with a bank in Londonthis is classified as a cross-border NOK trade.

Cross-border NOK turnover has increased over time. In the early 2000sapproximately one out of four foreign exchange trades were made with a Norwegian dealer. Advances in technology have facilitated this changeallowing Norwegian firms and institutions to trade foreign exchange with banks located abroad that may already be providing them with other financial services.

Over timegrowth in NOK trading outside Norway has been strongest in the UK. In recent surveystrading in NOK has also picked up in the US. In 2001around 30% of NOK transactions were agreed in the UKcompared with approximately 10% in the US. By 2025the market shares for these regions had increased to 47% and 19%respectively. The increased NOK trading in these regions corresponds to developments in the global foreign exchange market. Todaythe UK and US account for about 55% of all foreign exchange trading.

Trades in NOK are also made in other parts of the world (Chart 6). Around 3% were made in Germany3% in Singapore and 2% in Switzerland. Even though the share is relatively smallNOK turnover in Singapore grew from almost zero in the early 2000s to around USD 5bn per day in 2025.

Chart 6: Daily NOK trades made with reporting banks in different regions. All instruments. Percent

Turnover of all currencies traded in Norway

The section below covers all foreign exchange turnover reported in Norwaysuch as trades in EUR/NOKEUR/USDand all other currency pairs.

Norway’s foreign exchange market is the world's 25th largestwith daily turnover of around USD 23bn. By comparisondaily turnover in the UK and US stands at about USD 4 700bn and USD 2 400bnrespectively.

A decline in all foreign exchange turnover in Norway  

Foreign exchange turnover in Norway has declined from its peak in 2016 (Chart 7). Daily turnover has remained between USD 23bn and 30bn over the past three surveys. As elsewhereforeign exchange swaps are by far the most traded instrumentfollowed by spot and forward contracts. In April 2025these instruments accounted for 86%10%and 4% of total turnover in Norwayrespectively. The shares have remained relatively stable over time. [10]

Foreign exchange turnover in Norway is lower compared to figures from Denmark and Swedenwhere daily foreign exchange transactions amount to around USD 100bn and 40bnrespectively. Norway’s daily turnoverat about USD 23bnis similar to that of countries like Malaysia and South Africa.

Chart 7: Daily foreign exchange turnover. Norway. By instrument. In billions of USD

Large banks account for a greater share of foreign exchange turnover in Norway

Developments in the last two BIS surveys show that large banks account for a growing share of foreign exchange turnover in Norway (Chart 8). In 2025this share reached 73%up from 63% in 2022 and 50% in 2019. This stands in contrast to trends in global foreign exchange turnoverwhere large banks have maintained a stable share over the same period. According to some market participantsthis development may be due to large banks' competitive rates. In additionincreased FX market volatility in this year's survey may in itself have increased the need for risk reduction between large banks in Norway.

Chart 8: Daily foreign exchange turnover. Norway. By counterparty. In billions of USD

Extensive use of payment-versus-payment in settlement

Counterparties make significant use of payment-versus-payment (PvP) solutions in the settlement of their foreign exchange transactions (Chart 9). With PvP solutionsa third party [11] ensures the foreign exchange agreed upon are not transferred until both parties in the transaction have made their payments. This reduces settlement risk for the counterparties by preventing directbilateral settlements where transfer timing can differ. One reason some counterparties still settle foreign exchange trades without third-party solutions seems to be that the PvP service CLS does not support the specific currency pair being traded.

Chart 9: Daily settlement of foreign exchange in Norway. By payment solution. Percent

Appendix

The BIS’s collection of foreign exchange turnover data is carried out by central banks at the national levelincluding Norges Bank. Commercial banks contribute by reporting their own turnover figures for the relevant survey period. This yearas in previous surveysdata were collected for all trading days in April. This is the 14th surveywith turnover figures for the foreign exchange market dating back to 1989. In this year’s survey52 central banks and over 1 100 reporting banks took part. In Norwaythe largest banks have reported their turnover in NOK and other currencies.

Footnotes

[1] The survey covers all trading days in April 2025.  

[2] The survey covers the over-the-counter (OTC) market.  

[3] In the Appendixfigures are given in both USD and NOK.  

[4] The share for each currency sums to 200% because there are always two currencies in a transactioneg in 2025USD accounted for 89% of global foreign exchange turnoverwhile EUR accounted for 29%.  

[5]A currency swap (cross-currency basis swap) involves the exchange of notional principals and interest payments in two currencies.  

[6] https://www.bis.org/publ/bisbull105.htm

[7] The reporting dealers are referred to as "larger banks". Banks not included in the survey are referred to as "smaller banks".  

[8] Owing to a reporting error in 2016turnover was overstated in the spot market and understated for foreign exchange swaps.  

[9] Trades agreed through person-to-person communication. Telephoneinstant messaging and email are examples of voice-executed trades.  

[10] The same reporting error mentioned in connection with Chart 2 caused spot turnover in 2016 to be overstatedwhile foreign exchange swap turnover was understated. 

[11]  An example of such a third partyoffering PvP servicesis CLS.