Omega Adds US Equities to Alternative Trading System

TORONTO, June 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Omega ATS, Canada's low cost, low latency alternative trading system for exchange-listed equities and fixed income instruments, has today announced that it has expanded the list of US securities available to subscribers of its alternative trading platform. The 25 blue chip securities, including Apple, AIG and Proctor & Gamble, represent a broad cross section of the US equity market and add to a selection of US ETF's already trading on the venue.  

The additional securities, available immediately, are part of a phased roll out of US equities onto the Omega trading platform. The selected stocks are widely held within Canadian retail and institutional investment portfolios, and their addition will benefit all players by eliminating costly foreign exchange charges and providing new arbitrage opportunities. The move brings yet another portion of the OTC market into full public view.

President of Omega ATS, Mike Bignell comments: "In being the first Canadian ATS to add US securities to our venue we're trail-blazing the way to eliminate inflated spreads and opacity in foreign instrument trading. At Omega our key commitment is innovation but only when this enhances market efficiency. Any new product or service we offer must benefit the market as a whole as well as our subscriber community and that's exactly what we have done here. We will continue to add more US securities to the platform while listening to the demands of our subscribers to ensure we grant them access to the instruments they desire at the lowest possible latency and the cheapest possible cost."

Omega ATS remains the most innovative, aggressively priced, and fastest growing trading venue in Canada, having experienced a 1,690 per cent increase in trade volume between February 2010 and March 2011 according to statistics published by IIROC. Omega recognizes the importance of technological innovation and continues to work toward the goal of a more efficient and effective marketplace.

About Omega ATS

Omega ATS is a Canadian alternative trading system for exchange-listed equities and fixed income instruments. It provides a fast, price/time priority trading platform where dealers and their clients can trade at the CBBO (Canadian Best Bid and Offer) at extremely competitive rates. It has more than 70 subscriber firms including Canada's five largest dealers. The system is designed to maximize internal order processing speed – minimizing the time between when an order is received and an acknowledgement is sent. The company rewards liquidity providers with time priority over other marketplaces and is committed to keeping its marketplace fees as low as possible. For more information, please visit www.omegaats.com.

SOURCE Omega ATS