Interdealer electronic bond trading has had an unexpectedly
dramatic year. Cantor Fitzgerald and its daughter company eSpeed
have continued their impressive recovery from their September 11
losses, with the electronic execution platform now taking its place
at the centre of Cantor's strategy.
Cantor and eSpeed also surprised many in the market by entering
into public recriminations with arch-rival Icap over Icap's
attempts to poach its staff. The UK press delighted in courtroom
stories of high-paid brokers bullying each other before repairing
to lap-dancing bars for rest and relaxation.
Soon after, Icap announced its intention to buy electronic trading
system BrokerTec from the bank consortium that set it up. This deal
generated fewer headlines than the court case but it could reshape
the market and intensify competition between the courtroom
adversaries.
Worth about $156 million in Icap shares at the time it was
announced, the acquisition creates something close to a...
