BNY ConvergEx Group has launched a new patent-pending block crossing network, ConvergEx Cross.
The new system is the latest addition to an expanding market in dark liquidity pools - proprietary off-exchange trading mechanisms for shifting large blocks of shares.
The BNY ConvergEx group was formed last July by combining individual Bank of New York securities business units with order management systems (OMS) vendor Eze Castle Software.
The ConvergEx Cross is currently available to Eze Castle OMS clients and through the BNY ConvergEx Execution Solutions trading desks. Integration with other OMS vendors, as well as other connectivity platforms, is planned for the second half of 2007.
Bank of New York says the launch of the service demonstrates the ability of the new unit to swiftly mount a hi-tech response to changing market conditions.
Gary Ardell, managing director and head of BNY ConvergEx Group's financial engineering and advanced trading solutions (Feats) unit, says: "We evaluated existing alternative trading systems, spoke to clients and are pleased to bring to market in just four months the ConvergEx Cross."
While there have been multiple crossing systems emerging, Ardell says ConvergEx Cross is differentiated in its ability to enable participants to customise their preferences and parameters by, for instance, including or excluding certain types of trading partners. The system also offers a facility to use both negotiated and automated crossing preferences simultaneously.