FRANKFURT--Deutsche Boerse AG (SB1.XE) said Wednesday it recently signed an agreement with Stock Exchange of Thailand to assess potential cooperation projects in the securities and derivatives markets, in line with the German exchange operator's increasing focus on Asian markets.

"This partnership is an important element of our overall Asia strategy," Deutsche Boerse's deputy Chief Executive Andreas Preuss said.

Since 2013, Deutsche Boerse has shifted its focus to the Asian markets by collaborating with various exchange operators in the region, as it saw hardly any growth potential in Europe.

Deutsche Boerse already has cooperations and partnerships with a number of exchanges in the region, such as in South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. In Singapore, it is also setting up a new clearing house for the entire region.

However, the biggest step in the expansion in the region came recently through a partnership with the state-owned Bank of China Ltd., which will become a trading and clearing member of the German stock market operator, giving Chinese issuers and investors direct access to German and European capital markets.

Write to Neetha Mahadevan at neetha.mahadevan@wsj.com

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