— BIDS Trading Increases Buy-side Connectivity
UBS Pinpoint Connects to BIDS Trading
New York, NY – December 4, 2007 – BIDS Trading, the newly formed alternative trading system (ATS) designed to increase competition and liquidity in the U.S. equity block trading market, announced today that it has established a direct connection with an additional electronic trading platform: UBS Pinpoint.
“As one of the original partners in the BIDS Trading consortium, we are particularly pleased with the quality of liquidity in the BIDS Trading ATS and its level of participation. Connecting Pinpoint to the BIDS Trading ATS is another way we can provide our clients with access to institutional block liquidity—it is a real complement to UBS PIN” said Will Sterling, Head of Direct Execution at UBS.
“Having Pinpoint connect to BIDS Trading serves to reinforce our sponsored access model,” said Tim Mahoney, Chief Executive Officer of BIDS Trading. “As the BIDS Trading ATS continues to grow, we remain focused on our mission to unite the buy- and sell-side by developing a truly open, efficient marketplace for traders seeking to execute large block orders in an anonymous environment.”
This advancement further increases the number of buy-side firms that can access BIDS Trading’s non-displayed liquidity pool. In addition to UBS’s Pinpoint, BIDS Trading has direct connections with FlexTrade Systems, Inc.’s FlexTRADER, Goldman Sachs Execution & Clearing, L.P.’s REDIPlus, JPMorgan’s Neovest, and Morgan Stanley’s Passport.
A growing number of sell-side and sponsored buy-side firms are now able to anonymously trade large blocks of US equities via the BIDS Trading ATS, increasing volume and liquidity on the BIDS Trading platform. During the past six months, daily volumes on BIDS Trading have been steadily increasing. Over 2 billion shares* have been executed since the platform’s formal launch in April 2007.
The BIDS Trading ATS is open to sell-side firms and their sponsored buy-side firms, as well as algorithms, hedge funds and program traders. BIDS Trading offers customizable tools to empower end-users to successfully negotiate trades: information disclosure and minimum block size is controlled by the trader and users can choose who to trade with based on past trading behavior.
The BIDS Trading ATS is accessible to all qualifying broker-dealers and their institutional clients, subject to basic credit and regulatory considerations. Use of the system as a block trading service is not exclusive or subject to volume commitments and each participant may continue to use any ATS, ECN or exchange service that supports the trading needs of its customer base.
BIDS Trading Media Contacts
Caroline Bujak, BIDS Trading, L.P. +1.212.618.2097
caroline.bujak@bidstrading.com
About BIDS Trading, L.P.
BIDS Trading, L.P. is a registered broker-dealer and the operator of the BIDS Trading Alternative Trading System (ATS), which was designed to bring counterparties together to anonymously trade large blocks of shares. Developed by a consortium of leading financial services firms, the BIDS Trading ATS resolves the classic paradox of the block trader – the need to find legitimate trading counterparties without prematurely revealing trading intentions.
About UBS
UBS is one of the world’s leading financial firms, serving a discerning international client base. Its business, global in scale, is focused on growth. As an integrated firm, UBS creates added value for clients by drawing on the combined resources and expertise of all its businesses.
UBS is one of the world’s leading financial firms, serving a discerning international client base. Its business, global in scale, is focused on growth. As an integrated firm, UBS creates added value for clients by drawing on the combined resources and expertise of all its businesses.
UBS is the leading global wealth manager, a top tier investment banking and securities firm, and one of the largest global asset managers. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.
UBS is present in all major financial centers worldwide. It has offices in 50 countries, with about 39% of its employees working in the Americas, 33% in Switzerland, 16% in the rest of Europe and 12% in Asia Pacific. UBS’s financial businesses employ more than 80,000 people around the world. Its shares are listed on the SWX Swiss Stock Exchange, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE).
* Figures are double-counted, to include both sides of the transaction.