Trading Technologies International

Trading Technologies International, Inc. (TT)
Founded	1994
Headquarters	Chicago (Global HQ), 222 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 1100, Chicago, IL 60606, USA London (EMEA HQ), Capital House, 85 King William Street, London EC4N 7BL, United Kingdom Singapore (APAC HQ), 12 Marina View, #20-01 Asia Square Tower 2, Singapore 018961
Key People	Keith Todd, CEO
Employees	350+
Products	Trading software
Twitter	@Trading_Tech
LinkedIn	Profile
Facebook	Page
Youtube	Chanel
Website	tradingtechnologies.com
Releases	Company News
Blog	Trade Talk

Trading Technologies International, Inc. (TT), is an independent software vendor that develops high-performance trading software, infrastructure and data solutions for professionals. Customers include international banks, brokers, hedge funds, proprietary traders and other trading institutions.

The company is headquartered in Chicago and has offices in New York, Stamford, Houston, São Paulo, London, Geneva, Frankfurt, Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Sydney and Ahmedabad and Pune, India.

Keith Todd is TT's current chairman and CEO.

TT was acquired by the growth equity firm 7RIDGE in December 2021.

Products and Services

Trade execution

TT has two order entry platforms: X_TRADER, which was the company’s flagship platform for its first 20 years, and a software-as-a-service platform simply called "TT," introduced in March 2015. Both platforms connect traders with all the major global derivatives exchanges, incorporate single-click trade execution and high-speed connections and offer real-time fill and position details. The X_TRADER platform will be targeted to sunset for all users in Q2 2020.

The TT platform offers the features of the X_TRADER platform and is faster and more scalable. Unique to the new platform is a hybrid-cloud architecture that utilizes co-located execution facilities for exchange connectivity and real-time market information, and a private cloud for storage of user configurations, workspaces, audit trail data and other non-latency-sensitive components. The TT platform also provides its core service optimized for mobile devices and allows end users to strategically shift which FCM clears an order.

TT introduced its order management system, TT OMS, in October 2018. TT OMS is deployed via software-as-a-service (SaaS) through TT’s global, high-speed network, and it services every product and instrument accessible on the TT platform.

Infrastructure

TT launched its Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) offering in 2019. The offering, available whether or not a client uses the TT platform, utilizes TT’s global infrastructure to enable clients to connect to markets across the globe at microsecond-level speeds. It also leverages TT’s global operations and support staff, which procures, hosts, manages and monitors clients’ infrastructure.

TT’s IaaS offering is broken down into three services: hosting services, network services and exchange services.

Surveillance tools and data services

After acquiring artificial intelligence startup Neurensic in 2017, TT utilized Neurensic’s technology to launch TT Score. TT Score leverages machine learning to detect potential high-risk trading activity, providing transparency into a firm’s compliance risk.

In September 2018, TT Score was named “Best New Product: Market Surveillance” at the FOW and Global Investor Asia Capital Market Awards.

In 2019, TT announced a complete redesign of TT Score, designed to make the product faster and more powerful. New features from the redesign included Cluster Scorecard, Ladder Replay, Macro View and Investigations.

In May 2020, Trading Technologies announced it was rolling out a new platform called Echo Chamber, which allows individual firms and groups of firms to see aggregated and anonymized order data in real time from more than 55 exchanges. Echo Chamber combines futures contracts traded on different exchanges to provide a single view of each, no matter where the contract is traded.

Platform tools

Both platforms offer tools for automated trading, charting & analytics, user setup and administration and APIs, as well as TT's patented MD Trader, a vertical market depth display that allows immediate interaction to market ebb and flow.

The TT platform features new APIs that provide normalized interfaces for interacting with all of the TT-connected exchanges, designed to allow customers to focus on building strategies and trading tools instead of dealing with exchange-specific nuances.

The TT platform is also available via the TT Mobile app, released for Android and iOS devices. TT Mobile sits on the same network infrastructure as the desktop application, which means all orders route through the same high-performance co-location facilities to deliver low-latency execution.

TT introduced its TT Desktop front-end application in April of 2017. The application does not require a browser and can be used on as many monitors as the computer can support.

Cryptocurrency markets support

Trading Technologies partnered with Coinbase/GDAX in January 2018 to expand its services to include cryptocurrency trading. It launched TT Crypto, a free service, in May of that year. On August 5, 2019, Trading Technologies informed its customers that it would discontinue the service that Friday afternoon, August 9. The service failed to attract retail trading customers. Customers were then directed to Trading Technologies's pay platforms which connect to Coinbase.

In July 2018, Trading Technologies announced that it was joining with the UK-based cryptocurrency exchange operator Coinfloor in order to fight crypto market manipulation on Coinfloor's trading platform by leveraging its "Score" technology.

In April 2019, Trading Technologies announced a deal with HDR Global Trading, owner of the Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency derivatives trading platform BitMEX. Trading Technologies said in a blog post that through this relationship Trading Technologies's users eligible to trade at BitMEX will have full access to BitMEX's products, including its XBT/USD Perpetual Swap. Arthur Hayes, the CEO of BitMEX, said that this new partnership will "advance our mutual vision to unlock access to cutting-edge cryptocurrency products."

In May 2019, Trading Technologies announced that it had connected to CoinFLEX, a Singapore based trading platform in which it, along with CoinFloor and others, holds a stake. CoinFLEX, like BitMEX, offers derivatives but unlike BiTMEX its products call for s physical delivery on some derivatives.

History

The Early Years

Trading Technologies was established in 1994 in Frankfurt, Germany and founded by Gary Kemp, who served as TT's first chief executive officer. Kemp stepped down from TT in August of 2002. He was replaced by former Apple engineer Chris Derossi. After Derossi held the spot for only five months, Harris Brumfield took over the position.

Brumfield, a former bond trader on the floor of the Chicago Board Of Trade, switched to trading on the screen in 1997, and helped pioneer electronic trading at TT first as a customer, then as its largest shareholder, and eventually as its CEO.

Under Brumfield's leadership, TT increased its exchange connections, expanded its international presence with new offices in North America, South America, Europe, Australia and Asia, added significant engineering resources and leadership to enhance its technological leadership, forged many new global customer partnerships and increased its visibility on a national and international scale.

In 2002, TT experienced record growth, and was the first futures ISV to record a profit and achieve sustainable financial success, according to Securities Week.

The ability to grow revenues on a record basis while consistently increasing profitability earned TT a spot five times on the annual Deloitte & Touche Fast 50, which ranked the fastest-growing Chicago area technology firms. TT was honored by the listing most recently in 2004 when TT posted 5-year growth of 318 percent. Deloitte has not published a new list since 2004.

Growth & Patent Battles

TT's growth was spurred by a period of massive expansion and adoption of electronic trading around the world. From the early 2000s through 2011, the industry saw unprecedented growth in derivatives trading. Global volumes for futures trading in 2004 hit 8.9 billion contracts and continued soaring to 24.9 billion contracts in 2011, according to data from the Futures Industry Association.

It was also during that period that TT became a major player in patent litigation in the futures industry. TT was granted a patent on MD Trader in 2000 and soon after began to defend it.

Many other firms in the futures industry offered the same or similar elements as MD Trader, and were sued for patent infringement by TT. Its first major patent case was against eSpeed in 2004, a case which TT eventually won in court in 2007, and for which TT was awarded $3.5 million. (See the full list of patent cases below).

That suit and others outraged many, who were unaccustomed to patent infringement cases in the futures industry and claimed the patent suits were unfair and would raise the cost of trading. The issue became so contentious that Brumfield took out full-page ads in the Financial Times in December 2004, offering to drop all of TT's patent protections and allow full access to the industry, in return for a permanent fee of 2.5 cents per trade from the top four futures exchanges in the world. At the time, TT claimed that about 50 percent of the volume running through those large markets went through TT's software. The idea was largely rejected by critics and exchange leaders alike.

As such, TT pushed ahead with an aggressive strategy to defend its patents, filing suit against numerous firms and ISVs around the world. TT has won tens of millions of dollars in damages in settlements and court cases since then, and has not lost a patent case to date.

Acquisitions & Evolution

As Trading Technologies looked ahead, the firm sought to purchase new technology that would help it expand and introduce new functionality to its platform. In June 2010, it purchased TickIt Trading Systems for an undisclosed amount. TickIt's software allowed traders to build trading strategies quickly and easily without having to write their own source code.

The acquisition was a key move for TT in two ways. It ushered in new technology that TT could offer its customers, but it also brought TickIt's co-founders Rick Lane and Michael Unetich to TT. That software was rebranded as TT's Algo Design Lab, or ADL, and serves as a software offering that TT customers can use to design new trading strategies.

Lane went on to serve as TT's executive vice president and chief technology officer before taking on the role of CEO in February 2014. Brumfield stepped down, moving to a role as chairman. Under Lane's direction as CTO and CEO, the firm embarked on building a trading system in 2012 with brand-new software architecture based on the HTML 5 markup language, as well as cloud technology. The new TT system, released in 2015 as a software-as-a-service model, was considered a technological shift in the way that ISVs would design and implement trading software in the financial industry. Not only was the architecture new, but TT customers would no longer be required to implement new software themselves. Instead, they could access TT's software using web-based tools.

In September 2014, Trading Technologies and the European Energy Exchange announced a deal that would make the new TT platform the new default front-end trading screen for the exchange. The new TT software was offered to EEX members in early 2015, and was marked by the software firm as a major success for the new platform.

A similar deal was announced with Financial and Energy Exchange Group, or FEX in September 2015.

In October 2017, Trading Technologies announced the purchase of Neurensic, an artificial intelligence-based software firm focused on regulatory compliance. TT integrated Neurensic's technology into its TT platform, renaming it "TT Score." The new integration allowed customers to run compliance testing and opened the door to utilize the core AI technology for trading opportunities.

Score is a specialized software program that uses computer algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor trading behavior within Trading Technologies' platforms. This fintech innovation provides tools for notifying regulators and compliance staff of Trading Technologies when such behavior is detected, including breaking the data of the behavior down into simplified reports. It also includes protocols for tracking and reacting to manipulative or disruptive market behavior for which there is little or no clear regulation, making it highly applicable to cryptocurrency markets.

In July 2018, TT introduced options trading to its offerings, citing both long-term demand from users and increased global interest in the asset class. As part of the initiative, the company added several new features to the TT platform, including options analytics and various widgets. In October 2018, TT partnered with TradeStation to bring options-on-futures technology to the latter company’s customers, and in July 2019 TradeStation unveiled TradeStation FuturesPlus, its new TT-powered platform.

In October 2020, Barron's reported TT was up for sale, with Broadhaven Capital Partners advising on the auction. The company was expected to sell for about $500 million, according to Barron's sources.

Talk about a possible sale continued the following month, in November 2020, when FOW reported Goldman Sachs was negotiating to buy TT for an estimated $500 million, quoting unnamed sources.

In August 2022, TT began offering clients access to Nifty equity derivatives through NSE IFSC-SGX Connect (the Connect), a new joint initiative between Singapore Exchange (SGX Group) and National Stock Exchange of India (NSE).

In March of 2023, Trading Technologies acquired the London-based AxeTrading, a global provider of corporate, government, municipal and emerging market bonds as well as OTC interest rate swaps. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Acquisition of Trading Technologies by 7RIDGE

On October 31, 2021, Trading Technologies announced that the company had agreed to be acquired by 7RIDGE, a specialized growth equity firm "invested in transformative technologies." Cboe Global Markets and Singapore Exchange, who are among the limited partners of the fund managed by 7RIDGE, voiced their support of the transaction. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. TT announced on December 21, 2021 that the acquisition had been completed.

Technology Patent Litigation

Trading Technologies has defended its technology in several patent infringement lawsuits. Below is a list of patent cases TT has been involved in that have stretched more than a decade, primarily dealing with the MD Trader patent. This software allows market participants to see the so-called “depth of market” by displaying a range of prices including the best price for a futures or options contract in the market at a given moment.”

The first such lawsuit it brought was in August 2004 against eSpeed, alleging infringement of two patents relating to TT's MD Trader software developed the same year. In October 2007, a jury ruled that eSpeed infringed on its patents and awarded TT $3.5 million in damages. In 2005, FFastFill, a London-based derivatives application provider, agreed to settle the case less than two weeks after TT filed a complaint against it in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois for violating two patents on its MD Trader technology, embedded in the X-Trader software.

Trading Technologies settled cases against Rolfe & Nolan Systems Inc. and Strategy Runner Ltd. a few days after it filed complaints against them in August 2005.

Following the eSpeed case which concluded in October 2007, a group of other firms sued by TT continued on with their cases. The firms included GL Trade, Rosenthal Collins Group, CQG and Futurespath.

In January of 2011, Cunningham Trading Systems LLC of Chicago agreed to pay $2 million in annual royalty fees and $4 million in damages.

Trading Technologies also won its case against the Chicago brokerage Rosenthal Collins Group in 2011.

In March of 2015, a U.S. court awarded Trading Technologies $15.88 million after ruling in favor of the firm in a long-running patent infringement battle with CQG. The Illinois District Court upheld TT's infringement claims against CQG on two of TT's patents, but ruled against TT in its claims that CQG had induced others to infringe on its patents and that CQG’s own infringement had been willful.

Also in March 2015, a federal judge issued an order staying seven of TT's lawsuits against infringers while the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reviewed the patent claims. The seven lawsuits were first filed in 2010 and consolidated the following year in a case before Judge Virginia Kendall in U.S. District Court for Northern Illinois. The defendants in the case, who filed the motion seeking a stay, included TD Ameritrade, Interactive Brokers and TradeStation.

Partnerships

On November 6, 2013, Trading Technologies announced a partnership to integrate Ullink's order management system with TT's execution management system software and application programming interface.

On March 4, 2014, Trading Technologies and The NASDAQ OMX Group announced the release of Trading Technologies’ connection to NASDAQ OMX eSpeed. The connection to eSpeed gave all Trading Technologies customers direct access to eSpeed’s liquidity pool to trade across U.S. Treasury securities and U.S. Treasury futures products.

On May 6, 2014, Trading Technologies and VeloxPro announced a partnership to integrate VeloxPro’s BookMap order-book visualization solution with TT's execution management system (EMS) software.

On June 9, 2015, Trading Technologies said it would connect to Nasdaq's German power and Nordic benchmark power market contracts, among other European operations, through a new platform with mobile capabilities. The launch would expand accessibility to Nasdaq's energy benchmarks in Europe.

In March 2017, Trading Technologies linked the TT platform up to the Interxion data center, one of the main London data centers, which provides trading access to the London Metal Exchange, ICE Futures Europe, Euronext and the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange.

In April 2019, Trading Technologies partnered with HDR Global Trading, the owner of BitMEX, the world’s largest bitcoin-based trading platform by volume, to offer its trading tools to cryptocurrency derivatives traders via the TT platform.

In May 2019, Trading Technologies announced that connectivity to CoinFLEX, the first physically delivered bitcoin futures exchange, was available to eligible professional and retail traders outside the U.S. through the TT platform.

In June 2019, Trading Technologies teamed up with CN First, a futures broker based in Hong Kong, to expand access to Chinese derivatives markets to investors based outside of China. CN First is the first broker to offer Chinese market access via the TT platform. CN clients based outside of China can access the Chinese international products listed on the Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE), Dalian Commodities Exchange (DCE) and Zhengzhou Commodities Exchange (ZCE). Trading Technologies said the partnership will support the ongoing listing of additional international products as they are launched in China.

In July 2019, Trading Technologies announced a deal to provide a new product to TradeStation Group Inc. called TradeStation FuturesPlus, which runs on technology from Trading Technologies. The new trading platform offers options-on-futures tools, visualization and analysis.

TT Education Efforts

TT has invested in higher education since 2006, seeking to establish connections with universities around the world with the TT CampusConnect program. TT CampusConnect, a rebranding of TT's university program, was launched in May 2015 to offer free TT software to any college worldwide.

TT CampusConnect provides TT software to more than 100 universities in departments such as engineering, math and computer science and business schools around the world. The program also collaborates with educators on curriculum development, guest lectures and trading design and development events.

Awards

In 2004, the company was ranked as the top software company to work for in the Chicago area by Chicago Magazine and ranked the #3 best company to work for overall.

TT has also received multiple awards over the years for its technology.

In 2006, TT received the Lighthouse Award from the Illinois Technology Association (ITA) as the leading technology company in Illinois.

In 2007, Trading Technologies’ X_TRADER, designed to support trading of energy and agricultural derivatives, won the best commodities trading platform award from Buy-Side Technology. It also won this award in 2008, 2010 and 2011.

In June 2008, TT was named "Technology Provider of the Year" by FOW Magazine.

TickIt Trading Systems, which TT acquired in June 2010, was a finalist in Red Herring's North America initiative to honor cutting-edge companies and technologies and had won a number of awards in the past, including the Illinois Technology Association’s 2010 Newcomer Award and FOW Magazine's "Innovation of the Year." TickIt is now integrated into TT's X_TRADER software and rebranded as the Algo Design Lab, or ADL.

In November 2011, X_TRADER was named "Best Buy-Side Commodities Trading Platform" in the Buy-Side Technology Awards 2011 hosted by Waters Technology.

In September 2012, TT was named "Professional Traders ISV of the Year" in the FOW Awards for Asia. In November 2012, X_TRADER, was named "Best Commodities Trading Platform" at the Buy-Side Technology Awards. In December 2012, X_TRADER 7.11, which incorporates TT's ADL visual algo programming application, was named "Best New Product from a Technology Firm for Trading and Execution" at the FOW International Awards in London.

In July 2013, TT launched its MultiBroker ASP platform, which allowed traders to enter orders from a single X_TRADER workstation or API and send them to any of its participating brokers through a direct market access (DMA) network. TT was awarded “Best New Technology Product - Trading and Execution” for MultiBroker at the FOW International Awards in London on December 10, 2013.

In February 2013, X_TRADER 7.11 was named "Best New Technology Product" at the Markets Media Market's Choice Awards in New York.

In September 2014, TT won Trading System of the Year, Buy-Side by FOW magazine at the FOW Asia Awards in Singapore. It was also named “Best Buy-Side Commodities Trading Platform” at Waters Technology’s Buy-Side Technology Awards that year. And in December 2014, TT won the "Prop Traders' ISV of the Year" award at the FOW International Awards.

FOW also named TT the 2015 Trading System of the Year - Buy-side.

TT Desktop won FOW's award for "Best New Product - Trading and Execution" in September 2017.

In 2018, TT won two awards for its in-house produced recruiting video, "Come Work With Us." The video earned the Creativity International Design Gold Award in Film/Video and the GDUSA American Inhouse Design Award.

TT platform wins Derivatives Trading System of the Year at FOW International Awards 2022.

Key People

• 

  Keith Todd - Chairman and CEO

• 

  Elise Fleischaker - Executive Vice President - Marketing

• 

  Nick Garrow - EVP Multi-Asset & Buy-Side

• 

  Roger Mills - Chief Financial Officer

• 

  Bharat Mittal - Chief Technology Officer

• 

  Mike Ryan - EVP Legal and Business Operations

• 

  Patti Paladino - VP Americas Sales

• 

  Alice Pocklington - EVP APAC

• 

  Jason Shaffer - EVP Product Management

• 

  Vasco Sousa - EVP and Chief Services Officer

• 

  Steve Stewart - EVP Sales EMEA

• 

  Melissa Waitz - EVP Organizational Development and Effectiveness

• 

  Amrita Basu - VP Training and UX

• 

  Matt Duffey - VP Integrated Services

• 

  Jessica Duggins - VP Test Engineering

• 

  Daniel Feldman - VP Service Architecture

• 

  Christen Harvey - VP Strategic Partnerships

• 

  Mark McClowry - VP Business Intelligence

• 

  Elmedina Musinovic - VP Site Reliability Engineering

• 

  Philip Ramus - VP Infrastructure and Managed Services

• 

  Scott Rubik - VP Market Connectivity

• 

  Shridar Sheth - VP Platform Services

• 

  Julie Schraith - VP Security

• 

  Steve Smith - VP Finance and Accounting

• 

  Greg Szeszko - VP IT Connectivity

Office Locations

Chicago (Global HQ)
222 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 1100, Chicago, IL 60606, USA
P: +1 312 476 1000
F: +1 312 476 1001

London (EMEA HQ)
Capital House, 85 King William Street, London EC4N 7BL, United Kingdom
P: +44 20 7929 6161
F: +44 20 7929 4699

Singapore (APAC HQ)
14-01 71 Robinson Road, Singapore, 068895 P: +65.6395.7000
F: +65.6395.7001

New York
115 Broadway, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10006, USA
P: +1 212 313 5300
F: +1 212 313 5324

Stamford
P: +1 203 428 6276
F: +1 203 564 1402

Houston
20 East Greenway Plaza, Suite 120, Houston, TX 77046, USA
P: +1 713 568 2000
F: +1 713 568 2001

São Paulo
Rua Alvorada, 1289 - sala 613, CEP 04550-004 - Vila Olimpia, São Paulo - SP - Brazil
P: +55 11 3027 3700

Frankfurt
Trading Technologies GmbH, Neue Rothofstraße 13-19, Frankfurt, HE 60313 Germany
P: +49 69 5899 6816

Geneva
Cours de Rive 14, 3rd Floor, Geneva, 1204 Switzerland
P: +41 22 319 34 20
F: +41 22 310 54 17

Pune
Nyati Unitree, Nagar Road, #302-303, West (A2), Yerwada, Pune 411006, India
P: +91 (20) 6684 5100

Ahmedabad
1103 Binori BSquare 1, Ambli Road, Vikram Nagar, Ahmedabad, Gujarat 380054, India

Hong Kong
23/F, LKF Tower, 33 Wyndham Street, Central Hong Kong
P: +852 3905 3102

Tokyo
GINZA SIX 13F, 6-10-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061, Japan
P: +81 3 4577 8300
F: +81 3 4577 8301

Sydney
Trading Technologies (Aust) Pty Ltd, Level 16, 1 Market Street, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
P: +61 2 8022 1700