IN THE PRESS

Deal marks a significant step forward for Alasdair Haynes' stock trading venue, which went public a year ago.

Aquis Exchange, the stock trading venue run by City veteran Alasdair Haynes, is moving into equity listings with the acquisition of a market for the UK’s smallest companies.

Aquis said on July 5 that it will pay around £2.7m to buy Nex Exchange, which has 89 companies listed with a total market capitalisation of almost £2bn, from CME Group.

Aquis Market Gateway launched in January 2018 now counts SIs including Jane Street, Citadel Securities and Tower Research Capital as users.

By John Brazier

Aquis Technologies, the technology arm of Aquis Exchange, has announced that it has recorded a substantial increase in the use of its systematic internaliser (SI) connectivity hub during the first part of 2019.

Aquis Exchange is preparing to offer EU27 stocks in both Paris and London on day one of a no-deal Brexit, a move that could see it steal a march on larger rivals that will initially move all trading in these shares to the bloc.

The UK’s stock markets are scrambling to prepare for the possibility of the country leaving the European Union without a deal on Friday. This could cause immediate disruption to the billions of euros of equities traded every day in the City.

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority is expected to match a European Union share trading ban under a no-deal Brexit, the chief executive of Aquis Exchange said on Wednesday.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) said last month that if Britain leaves the bloc without a deal, asset managers and other investors based in the EU would have to trade over 6,200 shares, including 14 listed in London, on platforms inside the bloc.

Revenues at Aquis double during its first year as a listed company, but losses widen.

Aquis, dubbed the Spotify of stock exchanges, doubled revenues in its first year as a listed company, but warned that Brexit will increase its costs as losses widened.

The exchange, founded in 2013 by Alasdair Haynes, former boss of ITG Europe and Chi-X, said revenues rose to £4m in 2018 from £2m the year before. Its share of pan-European equities continuous trading increased to 3.8% from 1.9% over the course of the year, according to a March 20 results statement.

The trading venue’s sales head will relocate to Paris to lead the MTF as CEO of newly-formed business, Aquis Exchange Europe.

By Hayley McDowell

Aquis Exchange has received approval from regulators in France to operate a multilateral trading facility (MTF), as the UK continues to negotiate its exit from the European Union.

LONDON (Reuters) – The European Union should allow EU investors to continue trading Swiss shares from January, a senior stock exchange industry official said on Monday.

Alasdair Haynes, chief executive of the London-based Aquis exchange (AQX.L), said the EU should grant a year’s extension to allow the SIX Exchange in Zurich to serve investors across the bloc.

Shares in pan-European trading platform Aquis Exchange soared 18 per cent yesterday after it further increased its market share for equities trading.

The “Spotify of stock exchanges” increased its market share of European equities trading to 3.67 per cent.

The platform launched in 2012 as a competitor to exchanges such as the London Stock Exchange and Cboe Europe and has become popular for its subscription-based model.

Traders are charged based on message traffic and aggressive traders are banned from using the exchange.

Pan-European share trading platform Aquis Exchange increased revenue by 54 per cent in its first results since listing in London earlier this year.

The subscription-based equities exchange has also reached a 3 per cent share of the European continuous trading market and told City A.M. it was aiming for “significantly higher” as it looked to capitalise on its momentum.

Revenue climbed to £1.5m in the six months to 30 June from £1m the previous year and underlying earnings were also up to £1.8m from £1.5m.

Alasdair Haynes, chief executive of Aquis Exchange, fulfilled a dream when he floated the pan-European exchange in June. Last month the subscription-based venue achieved a market share of more than 3%, ahead of the year-end prediction made during the initial public offering.

Aquis Exchange was launched nearly five years ago in November 2013 to introduce a subscription pricing model based on message count, instead of a commission on the value traded. The highest subscription tier allows unlimited trading.