Dutch company TOM expects to launch its multilateral share trading facility (MTF) by the summer by accepting new members in addition to owners BinckBank and Optiver, its chief executive said.
TOM, which is seeking to be a rival trading platform to NYSE Euronext's Amsterdam exchange, is talking to banks and market makers which can use TOM's MTF to trade Dutch blue chip and midcap shares, Willem Meijer said.
"I think we should be active by the summer," Meijer told Reuters. TOM, which stands for The Order Machine, was established last year as a joint venture by Dutch online broker BinckBank and privately-owned market maker Optiver to cut transaction costs and enter the market of best execution services.
TOM, whose MTF runs on technology provided by Nasdaq OMX, would be open to have other banks or financial parties join as shareholders based on the volume size they would bring or generate in time.
Alternative trading platforms such as Chi-X and BATS have been gaining market share since European markets were opened up to competion in 2007 under the new European Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID).
TOM plans to expand its MTF to derivatives trading by the end of the year after obtaining a licence, which is expected after the summer, and will then consider options to expand in other markets and countries, Meijer said.