Many, taking advantage of Stock Exchange privileges, are essentially making money for their firms as proprietary traders. This perceived abuse of a system that has otherwise served the City well has provided the impetus for demands for greater transparency and competition from the regulators.The Stock Exchange was ill prepared for the currents turning against it. Moreover, with the rise of big integrated investment banks, the nature of trading has changed. Only a few houses are market makers in the old sense of providing a service.
They want to scrap restrictive practices at the exchange, such as not allowing better share prices to be quoted elsewhere.The changing face of the City has also left the Stock Exchange behind. Big foreign dealing houses now dominate, which are less wedded to the vested interests of the market making tradition. But the Stock Exchange is warning against the fragmentation of the market and the cost perils in this new competition. It fears this is the small beginning of a potentially dramatic development.There has been a significant shift in the balance of regulatory sentiment, as the OFT and the Securities and Investment Board, the main City watchdog, have called for curbs on the privileges accorded market makers, the powerful member firms of the exchange which drive the market by quoting prices to investors at which they are willing to buy and sell shares. Electronic Share Information and Sharelink appeal to private clients; while Tradepoint hopes to capture 2 per cent of the equity market next year.
It will introduce to the City the electronic, order-driven dealing system common in most international financial centres, where buy and sell orders are automatically and anonymously matched.These newcomers are minute compared to the establishment might of the Stock Exchange. From the end of October, when the current trial period contract expires, the price information feed will cease, apparently out of fears for security on the Internet.The move betrays a sense of panic, as the Stock Exchange reacts to competition, which will become much more serious on 21 September with the advent of the first rival exchange, Tradepoint. But the London Stock Exchange, fearing the first challenges to its monopoly, does not like it one bit.The start-up today of the first share-dealing service on the Internet, a joint-venture between Electronic Share Information of Cambridge and the discount broker Sharelink, has been thrown into confusion by the sudden decision of the Stock Exchange to go back on an agreement to provide real- time share prices to the new venture. JOHN EISENHAMMER Financial Editor A new era in share dealing is breaking in Britain. "If they [GEC] came to the conclusion they wanted to sell it then we could be interested," Sir Colin said, but he emphasised that no formal approach had been made to GEC.The interim dividend is raised from 1.75p to 2.4p Shares rose 6p to 241p.. The company is, however, watching the direction GEC takes with VSEL's howitzer gun business, which would fit well in Vickers' defence operations. On the defence side, Challenger Tank production was behind much of the 49 per cent rise in turnover to pounds 501m.Profits in the division were "holding steady" and for 1995 as a whole "could be up a little on last year".The black spot was the medical division, which is unlikely to match last time's full-year operating profits of pounds 6m.US sales have been hit by the government's threatened healthcare budget cuts.After spending more than pounds 60m on acquisitions in the first half, Sir Colin said the strategy would remain the same and "we won't add on another leg" to the three divisions.
05/11 Capture System of a Down Tickets staging in Key Arena, Pearl Concert Theater At Palms Casino Resort. System of a Down is staging in Seattle, Las Vegas and Mountain View. System of a Down tickets
03/11 - 04/11 Capture Kevin Hart Tickets playing in Paramount Theatre, Peace Center. Kevin Hart is playing in Oakland, Greenville and Providence. Kevin Hart tickets
04/11 - 07/11 Bag Jimmy Buffett Tickets performing in Cruzan Amphitheatre, DTE Energy Music Theatre. Jimmy Buffett is performing in West Palm Beach, Clarkston and Virginia Beach. Jimmy Buffett tickets