Bats Europe Rolls Out Buy-Side Access to LIS IOI Platform

Bats LIS, an indication of interest (IOI) negotiation and execution platform allowing market users to negotiate large blocks of European equities without revealing intentions to the wider market, was initially rolled out to the sell side late last year. Buy-side firms have now been granted access to the platform through the BIDS Trader system, which integrates with asset managers’ order management systems and execution management systems.

Block trading is expected to increase for asset managers, following the introduction of Mifid II in January next year. Under the new regulation, waivers will be introduced that enable market participants to negotiate large-in-scale trades without pre-trade transparency requirements, designed to protect block trades from unfavorable market movements caused by available information.

Credit Suisse, JPMorgan and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, among others, have already gone live on the Bats LIS platform, with more expected to join later this month. 

“Designed to meet the unique needs of the buy side, Bats LIS provides buy-side firms with control over their IOIs up until execution, which helps to protect against information leakage, while maintaining their important relationships with brokers,” said Mark Hemsley, CEO of Bats Europe, in a statement. “Additionally, Bats LIS is unique in that it brings together the block flow of both the buy side and the sell side, which allows for greater crossing opportunities.”

Bats Europe is part of Bats Global Markets, which was acquired by CBOE Holdings, operator of the Chicago Board Options Exchange, in September last year in a deal worth approximately $3.2 billion.