ALL,
FYI:
ETrade, Compaq to launch online trading
By Mary Lisbeth D'Amico
InfoWorld Electric
Posted at 6:56 AM PT, Nov 10, 1998
Online brokerage firm ETrade and Compaq are reportedly going to announce the formation Tuesday of an online exchange for trading stock options, according to press reports.
An online options exchange would let owners of stock options trade them directly via the Internet, eliminating the need for middlemen who make markets in the options on the exchange floor.
ETrade will invest some $2 million in the venture, which will be called the International Securities Exchange, according to a story in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal. The project is being headed by ETrade founder William Porter, the Journal said. Industry participants expect the exchange to be up and running by next year, according to the Journal article.
Another report in Tuesday's Washington Post said Compaq will be involved in the exchange. But the Post reported that the exchange will trade stocks rather than stock options. Compaq officials in Europe declined to comment on the story. A statement from Compaq is expected to be issued Tuesday.
ETrade could not be reached for comment on the reports, but a press conference will be held in New York Tuesday, the Journal said.
Etrade Group Inc., based in Palo Alto, Calif., can be reached at www.etrade.com. Compaq Computer Corp., in Houston, is at www.compaq.com.
Mary Lisbeth D'Amico is a correspondent in the Munich bureau of the IDG News Service, an InfoWorld affilate.
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