Raj Mahajan Appointed CEO of Allston Trading

CHICAGO, Sept. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Allston Trading, LLC announced today that its Board of Managers has appointed industry veteran Raj Mahajan, 39, as Chief Executive Officer.  Carlton Jones, 37, who has served as President and CEO since 2010, has assumed the role of Chairman and remains President. The changes are effective today.

Mahajan, who also joins Allston's Board, most recently served as President, Global Trading of SunGard Data Systems, Inc., running the 2,000-person stand-alone, global trading segment of SunGard, a $4.5 billion Fortune 500 technology company.  He is relocating to Chicago from New York.

Jones said: "We are making significant investments to expand our business and actively recruit talent, and we're truly excited to welcome Raj as CEO.  He brings to Allston not only his in-depth understanding of market structure across asset classes globally, but a tremendous passion for trading and technology, an innovative spirit and a proven track record at building businesses, leading companies and scaling organizations.  Raj's leadership and experience in successfully developing and executing long-term strategies will accelerate our efforts to grow and diversify our revenue stream."

Mahajan said: "Allston has an incredible franchise, with its strong institutional backing from Sequoia Capital and Francisco Partners and its extraordinarily talented team of traders and technologists.  The firm was a pioneer in trading futures electronically by applying a rigorous approach to quantitative research and technology innovation.  I'm thrilled to team up with Carlton and the Allston Board and very confident in our ability to invest in and grow the business."

"Allston is at a truly exciting time in its evolution, with terrific growth prospects. Prioritizing and accelerating its many investment opportunities is a key management priority, and Raj is exactly the right person to partner with Carlton at this critical juncture," said Allston Board member Scott Carter, partner in Sequoia Capital.

Korn/Ferry International's Board & CEO Services practice led this search on behalf of Allston.

Mahajan began his career in 1996 at Goldman Sachs & Co. in New York as an analyst in the Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Division. In 2000, he co-founded and served as President of Kiodex, Inc., the first Software-as-a-Service risk platform designed for commodity hedgers and traders. Kiodex was named "Energy Innovation of the Year" by Energy and Power Risk Management in 2003. 

The success of Kiodex attracted the attention of SunGard, which acquired the firm in 2004. Mahajan integrated Kiodex into SunGard, and his role expanded within the company in 2006 when he was named President of the firm's BRASS equity order management business unit.  After leading the turn-around of BRASS, he was named President of SunGard's trading businesses.  In this role, Mahajan expanded the firm's electronic trading and brokerage capabilities by launching new products and acquiring algorithmic trading firm Fox River Execution.   In December 2010, Mahajan was elevated to one of the top executive roles within SunGard when he assumed responsibility for the firm's global trading segment, which serviced several thousand customers, including some of the world's largest banks, hedge funds, broker-dealers and asset managers.  His segment provided customers in over 60 countries with trading, risk management, market data, network and brokerage products.  This year Mahajan served as an advisor to several major private equity firms.

Mahajan, who grew up in California, earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics at the University of California at Berkeley. He was awarded a Ford Foundation Fellowship, earning a Master of Public Affairs degree at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.  He is a Term Member in the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent, nonpartisan membership organization, think tank and publisher. 

Jones joined Allston in 2003 as a trader specializing in fixed income, foreign exchange, equity index and European products. In 2005, he was named Desk Manager for the Fixed Income desk and subsequently Group Manager for equity and equity index products as well.  In 2008, Jones was named head of the firm's London office, and later that year assumed the role of Head of Trading. The Board appointed him President and CEO in 2010.  Prior to joining Allston, Jones traded for his own account and worked in telecommunications and computer networking.  He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from Morehouse College in Atlanta.

About Allston Trading
Headquartered in Chicago, Allston Trading is one of the nation's leading proprietary electronic trading firms, operating on more than 40 financial exchanges, in 20 countries and in nearly all asset classes. Allston has an office in London and more than 130 employees globally. For more information, please visit www.allstontrading.com.

SOURCE Allston Trading, LLC