Group Co.
A Final Farewell from BATS' Concannon
Traders Magazine Online News, February 28, 2017
As Bats Global Markets is on the verge of closing its deal with the Chicago Board of Options Exchange, CEO Chris Concannon took a moment to make some final remarks about his tenure at the bourse and make some final market structure predictions.
Chris Concannon
Here is the letter in its entirety:
Dear Bats Customers, Issuers and Supporters,
Bats Global Markets, Inc. is expected to close its transaction with CBOE Holdings, Inc. tomorrow and, as a result, this is the last official Bats CEO Newsletter. So, let me start with a simple thank you. Thank you for your support. Thank you for your business. And thank you for your loyalty to this little company from Kansas City since 2005.
Bats employees have created an amazing history the past 12 years, making it difficult to sum up the company’s successes in a sentence or two. I could focus on our leadership positions as the #1 stock market in Europe and #2 stock market in the U.S. Or our ability to operate 11 markets globally with only 300 employees, or our successful moves into the U.S. Options, ETF listings and Global FX markets. And, of course, the many market-structure changes that Bats has advocated for or introduced — all for the benefit of the markets and investors.
Instead I will leave it to John Lothian, the longtime market participant, observer and curator of industry news, who put it simply — and best — on January 2, 2014, when he wrote a single, brief sentence in his daily newsletter:
“Bats has changed the game.”
Yes, Bats has changed the game. That statement, as much as any, encapsulates what this company and its employees have accomplished in the firm’s brief but unprecedented history, whether creating a more competitive dynamic or paving the way for a market structure that benefits all investors and market participants.
Founded in 2005 by Dave Cummings and 12 associates, including eventual CEO and current Chairman Joe Ratterman, BATS Trading began as an electronic communications network (ECN) in a North Kansas City storefront, surrounded by a bakery, a barber shop, a florist and a drug store. The firm, largely comprised of innovative software engineers tasked with building the industry-leading Bats technology, was immediately a leading advocate for competition, working closely with customers and other industry participants.
The company was aggressive from the beginning, both with its pricing and its unique marketing campaign, led by frequent CEO emails (or “newsletters”) to the industry, advocating for changes to the status quo and creatively critiquing the competition. I should know — as a competitor at Nasdaq at the time, the Bats CEO newsletters made me laugh with references like “Bob the Bully” and cringe when I was challenged to a public debate. Once, I even referred to these brilliant marketing ploys (since adopted by some politicians) as “Hugo Chavez emails.”
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