CBOE To Auto-Fill QQQ Option Orders Up To 500 Contracts
Thu Apr 4,10:45 AM ET
By: Kopin Tan, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- In a show of one-upmanship among option exchanges, the Chicago Board Options Exchange will increase to 500 contracts the size of Nasdaq 100 Tracking Stock, or QQQ, option orders that its automatic execution network will fill electronically.
The move is effectively immediately, and comes after the American Stock Exchange, and then the Pacific Exchange, announced late Wednesday that they would bump up to 250 contracts the QQQ options handled by their own auto- execution networks.
Until this week, small orders of up to 100 contracts in the QQQ options can be routed to these exchanges' auto-execution systems, where they are filled quickly and electronically.
Since their introduction, such auto-execution systems have proven popular among retail investors looking to have their smaller orders filled quickly and without being routed through exchange trading floors.
The move to broaden the scope of their auto-execution networks shows how floor-based option exchanges continue to expand their electronic trading platforms, following the trading-volume growth at the electronic International Securities Exchange.
It also shows how competitive the five option exchanges continue to be in their battle for market share.
Displaying 'Quotes with Size'
Separately, the CBOE also said it has begun to display "quotes with size" - displaying on trading screens not just prices of option orders but the quantity of these orders as well.
The orders are said to be displayed in decrements; in other words, as one order is being filled, a trader can see the portion or size of the order remaining unexecuted.
The Chicago exchange said it is in the process of rolling out this "quotes with size" feature among the options it lists. It is said to be available for QQQ options starting Thursday. |
