Turquoise, a pan-European equity trading platform, has joined the MTF common symbology working group because of the operational and trading benefits it will provide to its members.
The group, which also includes Nasdaq OMX Europe, BATS Europe and Chi-X, aims to ensure that all MTFs use the same stock symbols. Turquoise did not join the group initially because initiative was announced too close to the platform’s launch, but it now plans to implement the new stock symbols by early Q2 2009.
“Having different symbology across MTFs is an unnecessary complexity for all market participants,” Bernie Kennedy, head of post-trade services, Turquoise, told
theTRADEnews.com. “Once all MTFs have common symbology in place it will help participants in many areas, such as lower costs by removing back office inefficiencies and allowing smart order routers easier access to venues.”
BATS Europe and Nasdaq OMX Europe have already adopted the proposed symbology, while Chi-X Europe said it plans implementation by the end of Q2 2009.
As well as cutting costs and facilitating trading, common MTF symbology is also considered a precursor to the formation of a consolidated pre-trade price source for European securities, something that the MTFs are also tackling collectively.
Kennedy asserted that the initiative need not stop with MTFs. “From the working group’s perspective, we see uniform, global symbology as entirely beneficial to all market participants,” she said. “We would welcome participation from primary exchanges and other trading venues.”