Transatlantic exchange operator Nasdaq OMX has outlined plans to launch a new pan-European dark liquidity trading venue, Neuro Dark, next month.
The platform is slated to launch on 27 April trading around 800 European blue chip shares, subject to the conclusion of discussions with the UK's Financial Services Authority.
Neuro Dark will be a reference price system based on best bid and offer prices, offering similar functionality to that of Nasdaq OMX Europe.
The exchange says the pan-European platform will have smart order routing functionality, while providing a low-cost marketplace for non-displayed liquidity.
It will use the same INET technology employed by Nasdaq OMX Europe, by matching orders in the dark pool and routing unexecuted orders to other non-displayed MTFs. It will also offer firms the ability to enter an internalised order type.
Charlotte Crosswell, president, Nasdaq OMX Europe, says: "We recognise customer demand for a non-displayed marketplace that is not limited to block or large in scale orders. We are responding by offering a dark pool for all order sizes, one that can take advantage of existing order routing functionality."
Nasdaq OMX Europe launched in September, entering a crowded market and taking on domestic exchanges as well as other MTFs, such as Chi-X and Turquoise, that have launched following the introduction of MiFID.
The new dark pool sees Nasdaq OMX beat the LSE to the punch, as the London bourse will launch its Baikal venue later this year. Originally slated to launch in the first quarter, Baikal has been delayed by the collapse of the LSE's original partner Lehman Brothers in October.