Berlin-based Tradegate Exchange, the former OTC trading platform, has been awarded the status “regulated market” as defined in the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive.
Deutsche Börse has acquired a 75 per cent interest plus one share in Tradegate Exchange GmbH, the stock exchange operator.
Deutsche Börse also holds a five per cent stake in Tradegate AG Wertpapierhandelsbank, one of the market makers on the Tradegate Exchange.
Deutsche Börse has the option of gradually increasing its stake in Tradegate AG to a maximum of 20 per cent. The two members of the management board of Tradegate Exchange GmbH have been appointed.
“We want to continue the exceptional success enjoyed by Tradegate and expand this retail business further as a regulated exchange in Europe. With trading hours from 8.00am to 10.00pm, the lowest trading costs among its peers, and functions and order types geared towards private investors, the Tradegate Exchange has significant advantages over its competitors,” says Jochen Thiel, member of the management board of Tradegate Exchange GmbH and executive director at Deutsche Börse.
Thorsten Commichau, who is also member of the management board of Tradegate Exchange GmbH, adds: “On our first day of trading alone, around 5,000 more trades were concluded than the daily average in December 2009. The number continued to rise during the first week of trading.”
From 2001 to the end of 2009, the market share and trading activity of Tradegate, which was formerly an OTC trading platform, enjoyed ongoing and significant growth. From just under 40,000 trades in 2001 the number had risen to around 2.4 million by the end of 2009. In December 2009, just fewer than 175,000 trades valued at EUR835.3m were concluded on the Tradegate platform. The average order size in December was around EUR4,800, which underscores the Tradegate Exchange’s focus on retail business.
Deutsche Börse’s majority interest in Tradegate Exchange will serve to expand its trading offering for private investors and strengthen its position in the European retail market.
