Fintech giant SunGard has moved into the crowded dark pool market with the launch of its own alternative trading system, a crossing network for US equity order flow.
Assent ATS aggregates order flow from retail, institutional and high frequency customers of SunGard's various trading offerings, including broker-dealer unit Assent, the Brass order management system and GL Trade.
The idea is to offer users the opportunity to fill orders internally among the diverse SunGard community before routing to other markets. If no matches are found, users can tap the Assent smart order router to participate in additional displayed and non-displayed markets.
The vendor says the high volume of daily shares processed through its trading offerings means the Assent ATS will help customers improve fill rates, reduce transaction costs and achieve faster trade execution with minimal market impact.
Raj Mahajan, president, trading business, SunGard, says: "Assent ATS adds a critical slice to our 360 degree approach to trading, further helping our customers to benefit from economies of scale, with improved fill rates and reduced costs."
SunGard's move into dark pool territory comes as the SEC looks to step up its scrutiny of the venues amid concerns about the risks posed to market transparency and integrity by their proliferation.