MarketAxess gives back: stories of volunteering

Philanthropy has been a longstanding part of the MarketAxess culture. Whether it's through employees volunteering for causes they personally are passionate about, or donating to or volunteering with the organizations we support through our recently established MarketAxess Charitable Foundation, we love to tell the stories of our employees in action around the world. 

New York City: Analyst + Mentor Community Service Day at The Bridge

One of the highlights of the Analyst Program is the annual community service day, where both analysts and their mentors spend the day volunteering together. This year, our analysts and mentors took part in the "Do Good Bus" with TeamBonding, which certainly checked both boxes of team building and giving back to the community! A bus picked the group up at the office and took them to a surprise location; a supermarket sweep at 99 c Plus. Naturally, the group rose to the supermarket sweet challenge - after being split into teams (complete with colored bandanas) and being given $50 to purchase essential items to donate to a Senior Citizens Center, the competition was ON to complete challenges and shop in a limited time window.

The teams then took the items to the center and went over to The Bridge, a mental health and living solutions facility. Here, they assembled hygiene kits and cleaned out two rooms for renovations - which will be used to assist with interview preparation to get people jobs and interviews.

It was a great experience, not to mention, it was nice for the analysts and their mentors to spend time together outside of the office while contributing to a worthy cause. 

London: City Harvest

City Harvest is a surplus food redistribution charity, London's sustainable solution for rescuing food, people, and the planet. With inflation and prices rapidly rising, the number of families forced to rely on food banks is expected to increase further. Every £1 donated to the organization generates £12 in social return. We have been working with City Harvest London for nearly 3 years, supporting them both through our Charitable Foundation and employee volunteer efforts.

Earlier this month, eight of our employees visited City Harvest’s HQ in West London to help as warehouse assistants. On the day, they got busy sorting and packing food that needed to be delivered to the 350+ charity network across the capital.

Nutritious, in-date food should not be wasted, so we feel proud of our continued partnership with City Harvest, and contributing to their mission felt valuable.

Singapore: Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA)

Therapeutic riding is an assisted activity that helps with physical and mental health. Riding and caring for horses can improve mobility, self-esteem, anxiety as well as physical and cognitive disabilities. Erika, a Senior Marketing Manager based in Singapore, is currently making the most of her charity days (employees globally receive two of these days every year!) by volunteering with the Riding for the Disabled Association Singapore (RDA) - an organization she's passionate about supporting.

During the ten-week program with the RDA, each volunteer commits to oversee two kids with a disability for a couple of hours every Thursday morning. Kids come here with various disabilities and conditions, such as Down Syndrome, Autism, or other psychological disabilities. Volunteers are trained and briefed on the conditions and how to handle the kids according to their diagnosis. It’s a crucial step in supporting them appropriately throughout the program.

The exercises are carried out with the kids on the horse and volunteers are engaged as side walkers - they walk alongside the horse during the therapy session, make sure the kids are safe, keep the right posture, learn how to manage the horse and help them with exercises to develop their language, emotional and mobility skills. They are responsible for getting the kids ready and safely equipped before and after the session. Volunteers also update a report at the end of each session and record progress every week. It's been such a rewarding experience for Erika, especially when she can clearly see how the kids evolve and improve over time.