Update on WIT/AOL deal- Wit will offer banner ads,AOL will market it.
David:
WIT's customer phone service is much to be desired but I think they would improve it in time,in other words they have been trying to beef up their staff at the upper management level,I think now they have it.I hope next stop would be efforts in improving customer service,I haven't used their customer service via phone or otherwise in a long time 'coz I haven't experienced much problems thus far.I wire transfer money when I need to from my bank, never had a problem,it always hit the account the next day.I don't know how transfer funds from one broker to the other works so I can't say. Like Henry suggested send them an email,I heard they have started to respond to emails,in the 'old days' that was a luxury too,good luck.
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Wit Capital to Offer After-Hours Trading Through AOL (Update2)
Bloomberg News
August 5, 1999, 3:02 p.m. PT
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(Closes stocks in 5th, last paragraphs.)
New York, Aug. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Wit Capital Corp., an online investment bank, will offer after-hours stock trading through America Online Inc. under an agreement that gives Wit exclusive access to the biggest online service's 17 million customers.
New York-based Wit will pay AOL an undisclosed sum to be the sole tenant for six months of AOL's after-hours center, to open by Nov. 1 as part of the company's personal finance site. AOL will sell ads for Wit and promote its securities research.
Wit has been building its digital trading service for more than two years. The AOL agreement will give it access to millions of customers as it seeks to compete with rivals, such as Eclipse Trading and Datek Online Holdings Corp., that either offer or plan to offer trading after the markets close.
''The key to after-hours trading is delivering customers into the marketplace,'' said Susan Berkowitz, Wit's senior vice president of marketing. ''The biggest population of investors resides at AOL.''
Wit shares rose 4 1/8, or 24 percent, to 21 1/4, the biggest gain since its June 4 IPO. Wit was the sixth-biggest gainer on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
Customers who use the Wit site will be able to trade all stocks on the Nasdaq Stock Market and the New York Stock Exchange. Wit expects to offer trading for some portion of the hours between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. New York time.
Wit History
Wit built its business by distributing shares in more than 110 initial public offerings to its customers. The firm also has 15 research analysts and 40 investment bankers. Executives say IPO candidates often give Wit the chance to sell their shares in part because the firm promises widely distributed investment research.
The AOL after-hours center will promote Wit Capital's site, but AOL members will be able to make after-market trades on the site only if their online brokerages subscribe to Wit's service.
Wit hasn't announced which brokerages will participate, though its own account holders will get access.
AOL will also promote a series of live chat events with Wit's director of research, Jonathan Cohen, and provide links to research by the firm's analysts.
In addition, Wit will offer banner ads on its Web site for the first time, and AOL will market the space, Berkowitz said.
''They'll do the selling, and their sales force is awesome,'' she said. AOL will get 40 percent of revenue from ad sales.
''By working with Wit we expect to be at the forefront of this rapidly evolving extended-hours space,'' Rob Shenk, director of Dulles, Virginia-based AOL's personal finance channel, said in a release.
AOL fell 3 1/2 to 83 15/16 on concern Microsoft Corp., the world's largest software maker, may develop a low-priced or free Internet service.
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