Financial Regulatory Forum

Myners: concern over high frequency trading

    By Huw Jones
   LONDON, Feb 3 (Reuters) – Britain is studying the growth of high-frequency share trading to see if regulatory action is needed, a government minister said on Wednesday. (more…)

By Rachelle Younglai and Jonathan Spicer

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK, Jan 13 (Reuters) – U.S. securities regulators took their first stab at deciding whether rules are needed to curb high-frequency traders, whose lightning-fast computer programs now dominate equities markets.

In a move that could overhaul how markets function, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted on Wednesday to seek public comment on the rapid trades, the anonymous trading venues known as dark pools, and other market developments that have blossomed over the last decade.

The SEC will publish a so-called concept release asking whether the current structure of markets is fair to investors and whether they have the tools to protect their interests.

By Jonathan Spicer

NEW YORK, Jan 11 (Reuters) – Regulators are set to stir old controversies this week when they meet to release a paper on high-frequency trading and the broader U.S. equity markets, expected to review myriad changes over the last decade.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will vote Wednesday on whether to issue the concept release on everything from placing traders’ computers next to exchange computers, known as co-location, to the value of anonymous venues known as dark pools.

The SEC, under pressure by some lawmakers and others to do the comprehensive review despite no serious problems in stock markets, said this month the paper would look at “the performance of equity market structure in recent years,” and solicit public comment.

By Jonathan Spicer

NEW YORK, Dec 21 (Reuters) – About 25 high-frequency trading firms have discussed forming a lobbying group within the Futures Industry Association as they move to deal with growing scrutiny in Washington, the association told Reuters.

The firms have held a series of meetings in Chicago over the last two months, spurred by the prospect of a new transaction tax, commodity market position limits, and the possibility of a crackdown on high-frequency trading, the FIA said.

The group has a draft mission statement but no name, it said. It is unclear how many proprietary firms will ultimately join the group, which is expected to be formalized in January, according to the association.

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NEW YORK, Nov 4 (Reuters) – The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is considering whether the growth of high-frequency trading has made markets more or less efficient for long-term investors, including those trading small- and mid-cap stocks, an SEC official said on Wednesday.

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By Jonathan Spicer
CHICAGO, Oct 21 (Reuters) – The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has looked into the growth of high-frequency trading in U.S. futures markets, Chairman Gary Gensler said in an interview on Wednesday.

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    WASHINGTON, Oct 13 (Reuters) – The head of the New York Stock Exchange said on Tuesday that it was not necessary to bring more oversight to high frequency trading, a split-second stock trading strategy that has come under regulatory scrutiny. (more…)

By Jonathan Spicer
NEW YORK, Aug 24 (Reuters) – Senator Ted Kaufman on Monday asked U.S. regulators to undertake a comprehensive review of several “questionable” developments in the structure of capital markets, the latest lawmaker to weigh in on so-called dark pools, flashes, and high-frequency trading.

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