Deutsche Börse has enjoyed a successful first 100 days since it migrated floor trading to Xetra technology. Around 36,000 securities were transferred to the specialist model on 23 May.
The specialist model has proven itself, particularly in the very volatile phase of recent weeks. At its peak, turnover reached more than three times the volume of an average trading day at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
“Despite high volatility, investors were able to trade continually with high liquidity and low spreads. This proves the strength of the specialist model,” said Rainer Riess, Managing Director at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. “The earlier start to trading at 8 a.m. has also been so well received that the hour from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. now takes a disproportionately large share of daily business with 15 percent of the turnover volume.”
Deutsche Börse is monitoring the performance of the specialists on an ongoing basis, looking at the minimum volume and maximum spreads for the quotes and the maximum execution times. This ensures that the consistently high trading quality at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange is maintained.
“The move to the specialist model has considerably increased trading turnover at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange,” said René Parmantier, CEO of Close Brothers Seydler Bank AG. “Investors increasingly appreciate the high trading quality and liquidity ensured by the combination of Xetra technology and expertise of the specialists on the trading floor.”
Ingo Kreisinger, Head of Equity Trading Frankfurt at Baader Bank AG, said, “The baptism of fire for the new model was the nervous days of trading in mid-August when our strengths came to the fore. We were able to set the best prices at all times and ensured highly liquid trading. Frankfurt Stock Exchange was thus the first choice for many investors, thanks also not least to the reliable trading monitoring.”