The new arms race and the coming revolution

摘要

Back in the old days, runners, the people who grabbed orders and ran them into the pits where trades were executed, were called the "wheels on the bus," and speed was of paramount importance. Today that responsibility falls to the software, hardware and network infrastructure that connects traders around the world with the exchanges. And as electronic trading matures, trade execution times are measured not in seconds, but in milliseconds. In this new electronic trading environment, the need for speed is still there, but it is increasingly a given as independent software vendors (ISV), brokers, futures commission merchants and other technology providers battle to create and market superior technology and traders search for new ways to establish or keep their edge. In the new world of electronic trading, traders operate with increasing precision and more technical prowess than ever thought possible, never mind affordable. Tools that were previously available only to the select few have become cost effective for smaller shops, sophisticated individuals and retail traders who are entering the market in ever greater numbers. The institutional trader's long-held technological lead might be evaporating, prompting their search for the next new edge.