Use of Level 2 Pricing Up 400% In Last 18 Months

New research from Barclays Stockbrokers reveals that investors are increasingly using sophisticated techniques and faster pricing to gain returns, with over one in ten (11%) currently using real time Level 2 pricing and a third of investors (33%) using Direct Market Access (DMA). Both services have only recently been made available widely to private investors. While not yet a mass market product, the use of Level 2 data is certainly growing quickly – according to the London Stock Exchange (LSE), there has been a 400% increase in usage in the last 18 months. The average number of trades on the LSE’s trading platform during October 2007 was 573,767, up 73% on October 2006. Stephen Grady, head of global dealing, Barclays Wealth says: “We expect to see fast evolution in this market over the next few years. Investors are increasingly demanding quicker, transparent and more sophisticated techniques to access the markets. We have seen a real shift in recent years in terms of the techniques and products that our clients are using to gain returns.”

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