Electronic trading network Archipelago has signed a definitive agreement to sell its brokerage services unit to New Jersey-based Order Execution Services Holdings (OES). Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Archipelago says the sale of its Archipelago Brokerage Services (ABS) subsidiary was required by US securities regulators as a condition of its acquisition of the Pacific Exchange in September 2005.
Commenting on the deal, David Scheckel, CEO of OES, says: "As a result of this acquisition, we will maximize our services to become a one-stop venue offering advanced order routing and connectivity on one competitive low-cost platform."
The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals, was executed on December 23 2005 and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2006, when the unit will be renamed ABS Brokerage Services.
Last month Archipelago sold its Wave Securities broker subsidiary to Merrill Lynch. This sale was also required by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a condition of Archipelago's acquisition of the Pacific Exchange.