BATS Trading Inc. announced Monday the formation of BATS Trading
(Europe), formally signaling BATS´ move into the European equities
market, and said it is targeting live trading on its European platform
in 2008.
BATS also said it has selected a data center in the London area
and plans to release details shortly. In this facility, BATS will be
co-located with numerous other trading firms and market centers. Firms
interested in linking to the planned high-speed, low-latency BATS
platform should contact Ken Conklin, senior vice president in charge
of business development for BATS Trading, at the number below.
"We´re very excited to reach this point and are prepared for all
the hard work it is going to take to grow a European market center
that puts customers first," said BATS CEO Joe Ratterman. "It´s
critical for us to approach this initiative with a strong base of
support and we´re proud to have the backing of our group of
broker-dealer owners, the same coalition that has played such a
significant role as we move towards exchange status in the U.S.
"We expect to name London-based executives shortly to lead this
initiative," said Mr. Ratterman, noting the importance of having a
management team with extensive knowledge of local markets. "I´m proud
of our employees who have played a role in BATS reaching this stage,
particularly Ken Conklin, our head of business development, who has
led this project."
Mr. Conklin, who was previously head of sales and marketing at
BATS, will continue to be involved in BATS Trading (Europe), traveling
frequently to London and assisting the soon-to-be-named executive team
as needed going forward. An original BATS employee in June 2005, Mr.
Conklin began his BATS career as a software developer before assuming
his initial executive role with the company, as vice president in
charge of sales.
BATS also announced it has hired the London-based law firm
Speechly Bircham, which has extensive experience in the financial
services industry.
About BATS Trading
BATS Trading, based in Kansas City, Mo., with additional offices
in New York, was launched in January 2006 and operates one of the
fastest-growing, top-tier equity markets in the United States. The
BATS platform is developed by a core team of market and technology
professionals, catering to the needs of the broker-dealer community.
Included in the BATS customer base are more than 270 broker-dealers
and a broad-based ownership group including Citi, Credit Suisse,
Deutsche Bank, GETCO, JPMorgan, Lehman Brothers, Lime Brokerage,
Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Tradebot and Wedbush. BATS ... Making
Markets Better.
