Peter Randall has decided to step down as CEO of pan-European multilateral trading facility (MTF) Chi-X Europe for personal reasons. The company plans to announce a successor in the next few weeks, although it is unclear whether the company is searching internally or externally for Randall’s replacement.
TheTRADEnews.com understands that Randall, who has been involved in Chi-X Europe from its inception in 2005 and played an instrumental role in building and promoting the platform, now wants to take a step back to spend more time with his family. Discussions have taken place with the intention of Randall continuing to support the MTF, most likely in an advisory role.
Chi-X Europe, which was announced in April 2006 and started trading a year later, was the first displayed-order-book MTF to launch in Europe. Randall was named CEO following the launch, having previously held a senior role in the Asian division of agency broker Instinet, Chi-X’s parent firm, now owned by Japanese investment bank Nomura.
Since launch, Chi-X has built up a pan-European market share of 5% by value and 4% by share volume, according to data provider Thomson Reuters’ monthly market share statistics for January 2009. As such, it is so far the most successful platform of its peer group, which includes Turquoise, BATS Europe and Nasdaq OMX Europe. By comparison Turquoise, the second most successful of the group, had a value market share of 2.8% and a volume market share of 2% in January, according to Reuters. Turquoise started trading in August 2008.
Chi-X’s market share of FTSE 100 stocks – typically MTFs’ strongest market – is 9.5% by value and 7.9% by volume in January, compared with Turquoise’s respective shares of 4.5% and 3.6%, according to the Thomson Reuters data.