Images of large stock-exchange trading floors packed with day traders franticly trying to get their orders processed as they watch green and red lights running on LED boards no longer represent the reality of financial markets.
According to the paper Asset Risk Modeling: Techniques for a Global Economy in an Electronic and Algorithmic Trading Era, up to 85% of immediate trading decisions are made by machine-based algorithms.
In this world, a microsecond can mean the difference between a successfully processed order and a missed opportunity for profit. And the race for the fastest algorithmic trading platform has only just begun.
Algorithmic Trading: Percentage of Market Volume