Exchanges Embrace the FIX Protocol to Shore up Competitive Positions

By Annie Walsh
The Vienna and Ljubljana Stock Exchanges comprehensive FIX upgrades reinforce the continued global trend for reliance on FIX over an alternate proprietary technology. Annie Walsh, Chief Marketing Officer for CameronTec, examines a case for FIX.
2010 was a pivotal year that saw many local exchanges fending off new, unfamiliar competition in what for many regions have traditionally been non-competitive market places. With competition continuing to intensify and once cozy monopolies progressively being dismantled, the stakes have rarely been higher. If regional consolidation was 2010’s buzz, then 2011 will be characterized by structural reform, increased central clearing and the emergence of a host of new players that will be ushered in as a result of Dodd-Frank and EU legislative equivalents.
The paradigm shift has been good for FIX. Looking back it was the emerging new trading venues that first demonstrated considerable appetite for FIX. Their motivation was driven by an acknowledgement that FIX could provide ease of entry into markets and a competitive edge for attracting liquidity away from the traditional exchanges. Exchanges can no longer operate in isolation within segregated vertical markets. Their consolidation due to mergers and the emergence of alternative trading venues has escalated the importance of technology around the trading lifecycle. Latest figures indicate just how much liquidity the new marketplaces are attracting. Volume for BATS, Chi-X, Pure Trading and Alpha ATS, to name a few, show significant levels of liquidity shared by a broad number of different venues.
Field-leveling regulations such as MiFID and Reg NMS have also put the spotlight on technology with a growing focus on reducing latency that has implicitly changed the exchange business model. Competition for exchanges is about performance and cost, with the highest performing and lowest cost marketplaces attracting the most liquidity. Now, more than ever, the need for a more uniform API has become a critical consideration, and this is one area where investments in technology are being made. Exchanges today recognise the considerable benefits of an exchange compliant FIX interface on a number of fronts.
The FIX Protocol is increasingly providing the level playing field for many market  participants, while encouraging exchange market differentiation across more value added service areas, such as Straight Through Processing (STP), latency, trading platforms
and strategies, corporate services and increased data offerings. FIX enables exchanges to take advantage of economies of scale and provide broader access as well as generate the additional revenues the business requires.
The Vienna and Ljubljana exchanges are two marketplaces within the CEE Stock Exchange Group (CEESEG), now using a cutting edge FIX API for trading access, order routing and market data. CEESEG’s decision to offer this to members is in response to participant support for the protocol over any proprietary alternative. On the business side, leveraging FIX across CEESEG’s exchange members provides a more flexible and cost efficient solution.