Top Stories

TRADING PACES: Anova Connects to Chicago Options Markets & More

February 22, 2012 - The optical engineering firm said it is extending its high-speed trading routes to reach options markets in Chicago. Direct FX will use First Derivatives’ Delta trading technology to aggregate prices and execute transactions for retail and institutional customers. ICE Futures Europe will auction emission allowances in the UnitedKingdom. Asset Control is making AC Plus ready to track requirements of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act. The Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corporation (CDCC) has launched its fixed income central counter party services.

Broker Ordered to Pay $2M in Auction-Rate Securities Case

February 22, 2012 - A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority arbitration panel ordered Memphis-based Morgan Keegan & Co. to pay a Birmingham investor $1.95 million for misrepresenting that the Jefferson County, Ala., sewer bonds he purchased were safe, liquid and tax-free investments.

Operating Chief Leaves SIX Swiss Exchange

February 22, 2012 - Urs Derendinger had served as COO for the past two years, and was in charge of key strategic initiatives and projects.

Stock Funds Lose Momentum to Bonds Again

February 22, 2012 - Investors put an estimated $1.04 billion into equity funds during the week ended Wednesday, Feb. 15, less than half the $3.64 billion they poured into the funds a week earlier.

Spending on Tools to Fight Financial Crimes Growing 8.3% a Year

February 22, 2012 - In 2010, the financial industry as a whole spent $2.9 billion on hardware, software and services fighting financial crimes, IDC said. At a compound average growth rate of 8.3%, that will reach $4.3 billion in 2015. And would stand at $3.1 billion for 2011 and $3.4 billion in 2012.

CFN Launches Public Cloud for Data Delivery, Trade Execution

February 21, 2012 - Through a strategic partnership with Tier 3, which provides cloud infrastructure, CFN is extending its existing private cloud, known as its Alpha Platform, to enable financial services companies to self-provision an enterprise-grade, virtual private cloud on the public Internet for getting market data and executing trades.

Google Investors Get Real-Time European Data, Russian Investors Get Tweets

February 21, 2012 - The London Stock Exchange Group said it will provide real-time quotes from the London and Milan exchanges to Google users. Twitter said it will allow Russian search engine Yandex to show real-time tweets in its results.

Stock Auction Network Expands Trading Hours

February 21, 2012 - The AX Trading Network has expanded its hours to help its members conduct more off-hours business.

Active Managers May Not Add Value

February 21, 2012 - A new study by is looking to answer the age-old question: Do active investment managers (e.g., mutual funds and hedge funds) add value above and beyond simply investing in an index?

Deutsche Boerse Expanding Global Network

February 21, 2012 - The exchange and clearing service operator said it will connect the financial centers of Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, Paris and Zurich with multiple 10 billion bit a second links.

For a Brief Shining Moment: Dow 13,000

February 21, 2012 - U.S. stocks retreated on Tuesday, undermined by rising oil prices and doubts about the second bailout package for Greece. But the Dow Jones industrial average rose above 13,000 for the first time in nearly four years, earlier in the day.

SEC Widens Probe of ETFs

February 21, 2012 - Prompted by a delay in a big trade at a popular ETF, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is taking a closer look at a possible connection between high-frequency traders and hedge funds jumping in and out of ETFs, and instances where ETF trades fail to settle on time, this person said.

Conviction of Ex-Goldman Programmer Thrown Out

February 18, 2012 - A federal appeals court has thrown out the conviction of Sergey Aleynikov, a former Goldman Sachs Group programmer convicted of stealing part of the Wall Street bank's high-frequency trading code.

Dark Pools May Face ‘Trade At’ Better Prices Rule

February 17, 2012 - Will listed companies be able to force shares sold in dark pools to trade at better prices than on public exchanges? Nasdaq OMX appears to be pushing an amendment to a capital formation bill that would do just that.

Traders Manipulated Interbank Lending Rates - Report

February 17, 2012 - A group of traders and brokers had successfully managed to manipulate key interbank lending rates that affect loans around the world, one of the banks being investigated has told Canadian regulators, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.