Nasdaq OMX Europe, the pan European multilateral trading facility (MTF), has entered into exclusive talks with Equiduct about the possibility of migrating its client flow to the Germany-based trading venue.
Nasdaq OMX Europe announced on Wednesday that it intends to shut down on 21 May following an assessment of its financial prospects.
The MTF and Equiduct, which is registered as a regulated investment exchange under MiFID, are currently working towards an agreement that will give clients the option of shifting their flow using their existing connections.
“Our top priority is to provide clients with the seamless ability to move from one platform to another,” said Equiduct CEO Peter Randall in a statement. “We will be working closely with Nasdaq OMX Europe and its clients to meet this goal in the coming weeks.” Randall added, “This is an important transition and we ask that clients stay connected to the Nasdaq OMX Europe platform while we conclude these talks.”
“More than 40 clients throughout Europe are connected to the platform. Upon successful completion of these talks they will have the option to take advantage of a seamless connection to the Equiduct platform,” added Charlotte Crosswell, president, Nasdaq OMX Europe.
Equiduct has recently sought to refocus its business towards the retail market following a major investment by Citadel Securities, the market-making and trade execution division of Citadel Investment Group, in July 2009 and the appointment of former Chi-X Europe chief Randall in December.
“Multilateral trading facilities have changed the European landscape in terms of institutional flow and I think Equiduct is in a good position to do the same in the retail market,” Randall told theTRADEnews.com at the time. “We are hoping to attract not only those firms who serve retail investors, but also institutions who want to diversify the flow they interact with.”
According to figures from data vendor Thomson Reuters, Equiduct traded €14.65 million in March, while Nasdaq OMX Europe traded €6.3 billion or 0.79% of total pan-European liquidity.