Alpha Group announces new ETF Trading Fee Structure

TORONTO, Dec. 15 /PRNewswire/ - Alpha Group today announced that, subject to regulatory approval, it will implement a new ETF trading fee structure as of January 1st, 2011.

For all Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) with a value greater than or equal to $5, active fees will be reduced from 35 mils per share to 25 mils per share and passive fee rebates will be reduced from 31 mils per share to 21 mils per share. This fee reduction positions Alpha as the market with the lowest active fees for trading ETFs - a segment that represents a substantial component of the overall volume traded in Canada across all Canadian marketplaces. This is also a segment where Alpha established itself as the dominant marketplace by regularly demonstrating a market share in excess of 50%, as compared to the second most active venue in ETFs which is trending towards a 30% market share.

For a dealer facing a majority of 'taker' trades, this new fee schedule represents close to 30% savings on these trades. The new fee schedule comes on top of a series of other cost-friendly features at Alpha: free opening trades, an existing '25 mils / -21 mils' fee structure for all securities with a value greater than or equal to $1 and a value below $5, full rebates on iceberg orders, not capping rebates and the lowest active / passive ratio for dealers posting their resting orders on Alpha. It confirms that Alpha is the trading venue that stands for liquidity at the lowest cost.

"In 2010, the Industry started to reap the benefits of our commitment to reducing the cost of trading in Canada" noted Jos Schmitt, CEO of Alpha Group. "Now that we have reached a substantial market share in ETFs, it is time again for us to demonstrate that we live up to our commitments. We are all about finding the right balance between the interests of all our constituents: our recent and major technology upgrade has been most beneficial to our HFT community; this fee reduction is most beneficial to our Canadian retail dealer community. In line with our mantra "For the Industry, By the Industry" this new fee structure is available to all dealers without any restrictions".

About Alpha Group - Alpha Group comprises the leading Alternative Trading System for Canadian Securities - Alpha ATS, and a data distribution plant for Alpha ATS market data. Alpha Group was established in May, 2007 by nine of Canada's leading financial institutions with the aim of increasing the country's securities trading efficiencies and making the Canadian marketplace more globally competitive. Established for the Industry, by the Industry, the Alpha Group focuses on increasing liquidity, reducing the cost of trading and providing innovative services leveraging its unique expertise, operating model and technological capabilities.

For further information regarding Alpha Group, visit www.alpha-group.ca.

SOURCE Alpha Group