Citi Launches Intelligent Options Algorithms
In Strike Price, Tech Talk> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
  Citi has added intelligent options algorithms for U.S. equity options to its suite of advanced electronic trading strategies. The algorithms are intended to provide traders with speed, liquidity and the desired degree of exposure, using Citi’s proprietary smart routing logic, which provides liquidity and price improvement while avoiding information leakage. “The intended users of […] Read More

7 September, 2012

Assessing the Merits of an ETF: Debunking Common Myths
In ETF News> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Extract of white paper published by Chris Hempstead, Head of ETF Trade Execution for WallachBeth Capital LLC With respect to analyzing and selecting ETFs, one of the most common and frustrating mistakes that I overhear is “..unless the fund has at least some minimum AUM ($50mm in many cases), or has average daily trading volume […] Read More

27 August, 2012

ETFs move into long-term investing mainstream
In ETF News> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
By Murray Coleman –Evidence mounts that ETFs aren’t just trading tools –More retirement funds, endowments adopting ETFs –ETF advisers remain largely long term in focus Since turning to exchange-traded funds to build investment portfolios for high-net-worth and institutional clients more than a decade ago, adviser Rob DeHollander says he has seen a stigma form around […] Read More

24 August, 2012

Industry Sounds Off On Paying ETF Market Makers
In ETF News> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of James Armstrong If issuers of exchange-traded funds could pay to attract market makers to their products, would there be more liquidity in ETFs? Or would paying market-makers create a dangerous precedent and harm long-term investors? Or, is Tim Quast, MD of trading analytics firm “Modern Networks IR” correct when suggesting to the SEC […] Read More

9 August, 2012

Collaring Multiple-Asset ETFs to Manage Tail Risk
In ETF News, Strike Price> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of Phil Gocke, Options Industry Council Since the 2008-09 financial crisis and the central bank’s response of near zero interest rates, financial markets have been vacillating violently between risk-on and risk-off periods. This bipolar attitude toward risk has increased asset class correlations, negating the effective benefit of many traditional equity diversifiers. In this unpredictable […] Read More

8 August, 2012

Light On Knight: Editorial Opinion
In ETF News> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Editorial Opinion In an era in which “CYA” is perhaps the most-used acronym by institutional fund managers focused on fiduciary responsibilities, its almost surprising to notice the many anecdotal remarks that point to a single-point-of reliance on Knight Capital’s role within the ETF marketplace.  Some would think it “shocking” that so many institutions were caught […] Read More

7 August, 2012

Options Trading is Not Dead, Institutions Ramping Up
In ETF News, Strike Price> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of TABB Forum Options trading volumes may be down across the industry but the buy side continues to remain captivated by the potential of using options. TABB Group expects options volume to decline by as much as 10 percent in 2012, yet a combination of greater buy-side adoption and increased focus on managing risk […] Read More

3 August, 2012

Knight Seeks Lifeline After $440 Mil Loss : What’s…
In ETF News, Tech Talk> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of Olly Ludwig/IndexUniverse Knight Capital (NYSE: KCG), the biggest ETF market maker in the U.S., is seeking financing after saying that a trading glitch involving its systems on Wednesday that affected 148 stocks will result in a $440 million pre-tax loss. The company’s stock was down 45 percent in early morning trade. “The company […] Read More

2 August, 2012

What’s Next? Single-Stock Futures. Here’s Why..
In Strike Price> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
  Industry Pro Thomas Halikias contributed the following “Single Stock Futures…A New Dawn?” to Tabb Forum. Excerpted version is below, full article available by clicking on Tabb’s logo.. In nearly every conversation about single stock futures – and they’re happening more frequently than ever these days – several typical misconceptions emerge: “Futures?  We don’t trade […] Read More

30 July, 2012

Buying an ETF for More Than The Ticker
In ETF News, People Profiles> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of Forbes Contributor Ari Weinberg July 30 If you invest in exchange-traded funds, you’ve probably heard about the forthcoming service from IndexUniverse. If you really follow ETFs, you’ve probably wondered what took them so long. Years in the making, publisher IndexUniverse is finally rolling out its own ratings and analysis service for ETFs. Currently […] Read More

30 July, 2012

“QE3 Slated for August, the EU World Will Not…
In People Profiles> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Market commentary (excerpt of July 25 desk notes distributed to institutional fund managers) courtesy of  Ron Quigley, Managing Director/Head of Fixed Income Syndicate for Mischler Financial Group. While not ETF-centric per se, its a good read! Tonight we’re taking a bit of a reprieve from the standard dire EU news by delivering quite a different […] Read More

26 July, 2012

Don’t Forget Index Trading Costs
In ETF News> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
  Courtesy of Paul Amery Remember to check the assumptions made for the cost of trading when examining a new index concept.  ( Editor note: read between the lines, even though the phrase “best execution” is missing from this piece, the article should inspire thoughtful consideration re what true best execution entails). Vanguard’s warning of […] Read More

26 July, 2012

Taker-Maker Cupcake Baker- Nasdaq BX Options Fee Scheme Takes…
In Strike Price> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
  Courtesy of Peter Chapman/TradersMagazine The launch of the Nasdaq OMX BX options exchange, at the end of June, marked not only the debut of the industry’s 10th exchange, but an expansion of the use of taker-maker pricing. In contrast to the conventional maker-taker pricing model whereby exchanges pay liquidity providers and charge liquidity takers, […] Read More

25 July, 2012

Euro-Zone ETFs-One Expert’s Contrarian Perspective
In ETF News, People Profiles> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
According to today’s NY Times, one of the world’s savviest investors is once again taking a contrarian view, and this time its Europe. While Wall Street is continuing to wave a yellow flag whenever investing in European markets is discussed (after all, the widely-advertised risk of  “Greece contagion” remains at the forefront of most institutional […] Read More

23 July, 2012

Post Peregrine Financial Fraud: Futures ETFs Offer Safe Haven…
In ETF News, People Profiles> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of Cinthia Murphy In connection with all that news re futures broker Peregrine Financial’s fraud-induced collapse, Sal Gilbertie, head of Teucrium Funds—an ETF provider offering futures-based commodities ETFs—told IndexUniverse’s Correspondent Cinthia Murphy that futures-based ETFs might be the answer to retail investors’ futures-related concerns . Gilbertie, whose firm sponsors the red-hot, $100 million Teucrium […] Read More

20 July, 2012

SEC Punts on Payments to ETF Market Makers
In ETF News> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of Rosalyn Retkwa   The Securities and Exchange Commission has decided not to decide yet whether to approve proposals by Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange to pay market makers to make better markets in thinly traded ETFs. The proposals would require an exemption from a current prohibition against such payments. Rather than approving […] Read More

18 July, 2012

June ETF Short Report: ‘Q’s’ Shorts Drop 42%
In ETF News> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Courtesy of Olly Ludwig Short-sellers last month significantly cut their bets against an array of the broadest U.S. stock indexes, which looks quite sensible in the rearview mirror considering both the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones industrials average rallied by nearly 4 percent in June. While financial markets are again on tenterhooks over the […] Read More

13 July, 2012

How NOT to Execute Your ETF Block Order..Best Ex…
In ETF News, People Profiles> By MarketsMuse Staff Reporter
Editor note: For those who didn’t get the”Best Ex Meets Worst Ex” memo,  Ugo Egbunike from IndexUniverse spotlighted a block trade in QAI this past Monday that was apparently mangled by the executing broker, illustrating once again that ETFs are NOT stocks, and real best execution requires guidance from a truly-professional trader that actually knows […] Read More

12 July, 2012