(June 29 – 09:50 ET) – VERSUS Technologies Inc. and Archipelago LLC are teaming up to offer bi-directional, cross-border order routing between Canada and U.S.
Under the deal, VERSUS may route orders for NASDAQ, NYSE, and AMEX listed securities entered to the Archipelago ECN for execution. It expects to make this feature available by August, and to soon offer access to Canadian markets for Archipelago’s clients.
“This agreement represents an important part of our strategy aimed at providing better linkage between Canadian investors and global markets”, said Nigel Etherington, executive vice president strategic business development at VERSUS. “We are excited about the opportunity to offer our clients more efficient electronic access to the largest and deepest liquidity pools in the world.”
“The Canadian marketplace is of significant interest and importance to Archipelago and our customers. This cross-border link with VERSUS will provide seamless access to Canada’s equity markets and more flexibility in our order routing capabilities,” said Gerry Putnam, CEO of Archipelago. “This relationship expands our international alliances and brings the rich features and benefits of Archipelago to Canadian customers.”
E*TRADE Group Inc., which is in the midst of acquiring VERSUS is also an investor in Archipelago, owning about 12% of its shares. In March, Archipelago and the Pacific Exchange announced a plan to create the first fully electronic national stock exchange for NYSE, AMEX and NASDAQ stocks.
-IE Staff