Etrading Featured Articles

Alternative Trading Systems Are Emerging in Europe to Meet MiFID Best Execution Requirements
Europe's MiFID regulation is giving rise to alternative trading systems (ATSs) to challenge the traditional exchanges and help the buy-side achieve best execution.

Head Traders Discuss What It Takes to Manage a Trading Desk
Advanced Trading's Randall S. Devere spoke with some prominent head traders about what it takes to manage a trading desk. What potential -- and pitfalls -- do they see in their traders? Where are they focusing most of their energies? And what keeps them up at night?

The SEC May Start Monitoring Non-Transparent and Restricted-Access Trading Alternatives, or Dark Books, More Closely in the Future
The SEC is concerned about the effect the proliferation of dark books will have on public markets.

The Options Penny Pilot Has Been Successful So Far
While early returns on the SEC's graduated pilot for switching from nickel pricing to penny pricing of options have been positive, data-capacity issues remain.

Lehman Brothers and Fidelity Brokerage Link Their Dark Pools
This direct link between their respective ATSs will enable traders to place orders on either firm's matching engine and cross with both liquidity pools while still limiting market impact.

LSE CIO David Lester Opens Up About Launch of Next-Generation Trading Platform, TradElect and the Global Market
As the chatter around Nasdaq's failed takeover of the London Stock Exchange dies down, the LSE is readying to prove that it's worth its weight in trading. The exchange is preparing to launch its next-generation trading platform, TradElect, late in the second quarter. The platform, which has been more than two years in the making and has been functional for almost a year, is in final testing.

Can Asset Managers and Hedge Funds Converge?
Traditional asset managers are venturing into the alternative investment arena. But can long-only funds merge their trading desks with hedge funds without raising red flags?

The Financial Services Industry Increases Its Demand for Transparency
The demand for transparency has spread across the financial services industry, extending to the micro level of electronic trading, as buy-side traders increasingly seek additional information on - and control over - the broker algorithms they use.

What Is 'Best Execution'?
Though traders are required to strive for best execution, it has not been definitively defined. Fortunately, new tools can help firms identify good trades.

The NYSE Is Releasing NYSE Bonds
The New York Stock Exchange kicks off the new year by reentering the bond market with an equity-trading model.

The Buy-Side Dilemma: Research vs. Execution
Commission-sharing arrangements are a big trend in the U.K. Now, the buy side is evaluating CSAs as a way to pay for research and consolidate their trading relationships in the U.S.

Dark Books: The Next Chapter
Two new dark books have been created to link venues and decrease market fragmentation, but will they be the answer the buy side is looking for?

Algos Dip Into Multiple Dark Pools
In search of hidden liquidity, EdgeTrade and ITG introduce algorithms that employ a smart-posting strategy to fan dark books.

Brokers Back CSAs to Help Buy Side Achieve Best Execution and Pay Research Providers
For Fairfield Greenwich Group, aggregating an accurate risk picture across externally managed vehicles requires flexible solutions.

The Buy Side Jumps on Board the Push to Automate OTC Derivatives
Now that traditional buy-side firms and hedge funds are increasingly investing in credit derivatives, the fastest-growing product in the OTC derivatives space, the industry is focusing on automating post-trade processes to reduce operational risk.

Surging Electronic Trading Volumes and Reg NMS Require Financial Firms to Enhance Underlying Technology Infrastructures
As trading activity becomes more electronic and federal regulations create more information requirements, bigger and faster IT infrastructures will be needed to handle the increases in trade volumes and the associated market data and messaging.

A Market Turned Upside Down
The European Union's Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) is scheduled to go into effect in November 2007. Even U.S.-based firms will need to have a thorough strategic plan for compliance in order to stay competitive in the global markets.

NYSE Requests a Four-Week Extension of the Reg NMS Deadline
Although it has been beaten to death by industry analysts and press, the importance of the changes to the U.S. securities industry spurred by Reg NMS cannot be overstated. The industry anxiously awaits full implementation of the regulation in 2007.

In the Search of Liquidity: The Time Is Now
After more than a year of investing in technology to comply with Reg NMS, firms need to demonstrate that their systems are up to the challenge of dealing with a shattered market and accessing 30 or more trading venues in the scramble for liquidity.