Tim Wildenberg has vowed to put Swedish agency brokerage Neonet “back on the map” as he takes over as CEO.
A former head of electronic trading at Citi, Wildenberg said leveraging Neonet’s strong brand recognition and expertise in the electronic trading space would be a key objective for the business.
“I see a lot of potential for a broker who can be dynamic, nimble and on the cutting edge of technology,” he explained. “We have some fantastic knowhow that can help us react quickly to market developments.”
Wildenberg believes there is growing demand from clients for niche, neutral players in the market and wants to position Neonet to target this.
The business was founded in 1996 as an electronic trading specialist and was acquired in 2010 by financial technology provider Orc Group. In February 2012, Orc was bought by a private equity fund managed by Nordic Capital, with Neonet demerged shortly after. In March this year, the firm was sold to current owners Hay Tor Capital, private equity fund, and KAS Bank.
Wildenberg said Neonet’s links with KAS bank could open up new market opportunities for the firm.
“We see opportunities with KAS bank, we are seeing increased demand for people who can service the wholesale market by providing a combined execution and custody service.”
The combination of an established player in the clearing and custody space with an execution specialist like Neonet works well in the market, Wildenberg explained, and will play well into the wholesale client base.
The firm is also looking to make further inroads with the buy-side, with traditional long-only asset managers looking to do specialist work quickly, allowing them to exploit opportunities ahead of competitors.
Regulatory changes are also working in Neonet’s favour: “With developments around commission sharing agreements and unbundling that continues to play out in the market, this bodes well for us.”
Wildenberg’s key goal in the coming twelve months is to return Neonet to being one of the top rated agency brokerages and bring it to the cutting edge of electronic trading. He hopes to achieve this by offering a more flexible service to clients that can bring some high-touch elements together with technology in order to meet specialist needs.