07/18/05

FX spot broker EBS is slated to launch this week an application programming interface (API) to support automated trading strategies, officials say. The new API, EBS Spot Ai, will allow users to connect their automated trading systems with the liquidity found via EBS Spot. The service will be offered to the inter-bank trading community as well as to other professional traders from the buy-side community. EBS will also offer its EBS Live direct data feed as a low-latency source of data to drive algorithmic trading applications, officials say.

Officials at ING, headquartered in Amsterdam, announced last week that it is streamlining its IT operations in the Netherlands, which will result in a headcount cut of 450 staff. ING's operations and IT division employ approximately 18,000 staff to support its retail, wholesale banking and insurance operations in the region. It is not known how many fired IT personnel are responsible for wholesale banking technologies.

Trading Technologies (TT) has settled another of its MD Trader patent infringement lawsuits, this time with NinjaTrader, a Denver-based developer of retail-focused trading software, officials say. Under the terms of the agreement, Ninja officials admit that they were infringing upon TT's patents and the company acknowledges the validity of TT's. Ninja will now have to pay a license fee to TT that comprises of a variable royalty of $.10 per side for all contracts using the infringing NinjaTrader SuperDOM screen.