OTC Markets Group Announces 2010 Trading Statistics

NEW YORK, March 15, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM), which operates the world's largest electronic marketplace for unlisted stocks, today announced 2010 trading results and marketplace trends. Priced quotations on OTC Markets Group's interdealer quotation and trade negotiation system, OTC Link™, grew by 31% in 2010.  This increase is attributable to an overall increase in foreign stocks traded in the U.S. and broker-dealers choosing to publish more quotations in OTC Link to take advantage of the wide quote distribution and trade messaging connectivity offered by the OTC Link platform.

(Logo: https://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110118/MM31963LOGO )

OTC Markets Group continues to see strong growth in its OTCQX® market tier, the top tier of the OTC marketplace.  OTCQX securities trade on OTC Link - this tier includes only those OTC companies that meet the highest financial standards and undergo a qualitative review.  The OTCQX tier represented 11% of the dollar volume and 10% of the market capitalization of OTC Link-eligible securities traded during 2010.  The OTCQX tier grew by 103% in 2010, adding 93 new companies including global leaders such as AXA, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Telekom AG, and Zurich Financial Services Ltd., as well as 9 U.S. and 55 TSX-listed Canadian companies. 

OTCQB®, the middle tier of the OTC market, was introduced in April 2010 to help investors identify OTC-traded companies that report to the SEC or a U.S. banking or insurance regulator. OTCQB was created in response to the increasing number of U.S. reporting companies quoted solely on the OTC Link platform.  At the end of 2010, broker-dealers published 93% of all OTC priced quotes on OTC Link, compared to 7% on the OTC Bulletin Board™ (OTCBB).

The global growth and trading performance of OTCQX, the introduction of the OTCQB tier, and the increasing number of broker-dealers choosing to quote OTC stocks exclusively on the OTC Link platform, are the result of OTC Markets Group's continued investment in its technology platform and leadership as the financial information provider for the OTC marketplace. 

Liquidity follows transparency.  Issuers of OTCQX, OTCQB, and OTC Pink™ securities that provided current disclosure to the public markets during the full year of 2010, either through a regulator or directly to OTC Markets Group, represented 91% of the total dollar volume of securities quoted on OTC Link.

In 2010, OTCQX was the leader by average dollar volume per security among alternative or entry level markets, demonstrating strong demand for trusted companies among U.S. investors.

More broker-dealers are choosing the superior performance and functionality of OTC Link over FINRA's OTCBB for publishing priced quotes in OTC securities:

*There were a total of 103,223 priced and un-priced quotations on OTC Link and 7,128 on the OTC Bulletin Board in December 2010.

About OTC Markets Group Inc.

OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM) operates the world's largest electronic marketplace for unlisted stocks.  Our OTC Link platform supports an open network of competing broker-dealers that provide investors with the best prices in over 10,000 OTC securities.  In 2010, securities on OTC Link traded over $144 billion in dollar volume, making it the third largest U.S. equity trading venue after NASDAQ and the New York Stock Exchange.  We categorize the wide spectrum of OTC-traded companies into three tiers - OTCQX (the quality-controlled marketplace for investor friendly companies), OTCQB (the U.S. reporting company marketplace for development stage companies), and OTC Pink (the speculative trading marketplace) - so investors can identify the level and quality of information companies provide.  To learn more about how OTC Markets Group makes the unlisted markets more transparent, informed, and efficient, visit www.otcmarkets.com.

SOURCE OTC Markets Group Inc.