A new FX multi-manager platform is about to burst onto the scene in the form of CitiFX Access, a move which the US banking giant says is intended to make investment in currency alpha easier and more efficient.

CitiFX offers a range of vehicles facilitating investment in FX managers via multi-strategy benchmark and actively-managed indices licensed from a clutch of big name index sponsors, including BarclayHedge, Parker Global Strategies, Absolute Return Strategies and Quaesta Capital.

The platform will comprise around 35 currency programmes, which in turn represent about half the global assets under management in currency funds.

Following the launch, the BarclayHedge BTOP FX and the Parker Global Currency Manager indices will be investable for the first time. Meanwhile, Absolute Return Strategies will provide diversified currency alpha by actively allocating to different trading styles, while Quaesta Capital will offer a thematic approach via its Global Growth, Momentum and Market Neutral multi-manager indices, Citi said.

Also among the products included in the launch is the Alpha Blend family of indices – the brainchild of FX trading veteran John Dean, chief executive of Absolute Return Strategies – which comprises 8-10 managers who focus on allocating to uncorrelated trading styles. Meanwhile, head of FX multi-manager programs at Quaesta Capital, Pablo Frei, has compiled style-centric indices designed to plug specific gaps in investors’ portfolios.

The bank views FX as a good investment choice at a time when cross-asset diversification is drying up and liquidity is an ongoing concern. For his part, Sol Waksman, CEO of research firm BarclayHedge, said he regards the launch of the new platform as a “game changer” for alternative benchmark providers. “Giving real access to benchmark indices is extremely powerful and reflects current investor demand,” he said.

The CitiFX Access indices will be published on Bloomberg and on CitiVelocity.