Nasdaq Launches Dark Pool Surveillance Monitoring Module for Smarts

The module, named Smarts Surveillance for Dark Pools, has been launched by Nasdaq in response to greater regulatory interest in dark pool trading. It provides capabilities to extend the Smarts trade surveillance platform ─ winner of the Best Sell-Side Market Surveillance Product category at this year's Sell-Side Technology Awards ─ and is designed to extend surveillance functionality and maintain compliance for dark pool operators.

The module provides surveillance capabilities on market manipulation and abusive behaviors such as price manipulation, insider trading, front running, and cross-market (lit vs dark) manipulation.

"In order to ensure integrity and compliance, dark venue operators and participants internalizing or crossing order flow, or externally participating in dark venues, need to have processes and systems in place to monitor activity for manipulative trading," says Michael O'Brien, head of product development for Smarts Trade Surveillance. "Not only does this support regulatory compliance needs, it is simply good business practice, particularly in a quickly evolving marketplace like dark pools."