OK, Lucias. Fine. ES and NQ scalpers - firm went from 60 traders to 18 during Steenbarger's tenure as Director of Trader Development while at Kingstree. And that is a fact. Look at Steenbarger's resume and timeline. Scraps got swallowed up by a spread trading firm of 100 traders.
From Crain's Chicago Business:
CHICAGO, IL --- December 14, 2009 --- HTG Capital Partners, a 100-person trading firm based in Chicago, acquired Kingstree Trading Group, which at one time accounted for 25% of stock-index futures trading at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
The acquisition by HTG highlights a seismic shift taking place in the Chicago trading world, as large firms absorb smaller ones in a technological arms race that rewards those with the fastest trading systems. Chicagoâs futures exchanges were built on open outcry, where traders stand cheek by jowl, shouting and
gesturing to buy and sell futures contracts tied to the price of meats and grains. By the turn of the 21st century, many futures exchanges overseas had begun to handle most or all of their
business electronically â but in Chicago, floor-trading still dominated. Chuck McElveen, Kingstreeâs Founder, was an early convert to the electronic trading model, and his firm appealed to floor traders seeking a place to transfer their face-to-face skills to a computer-based environment. Kingstreeâs traders, once numbering as many as 60, were the earliest traders of CMEâs electronic S&P 500 index futures and helped make them into the marketâs most active stock-index-based contracts. âKingstree was one of the early movers in shaping todayâs proprietary trading business, and this merger adds a highly talented group of traders and managers to the HTG organization,â HTG CEO William McNeill said in a statement.
In recent years Kingstreeâs business has dwindled, eclipsed by bigger firms with ever more sophisticated computer-driven trading styles. Mr. McElveenâs decision to sell the bulk of his firmâs business to a bigger firm reflects that new reality.
Financial terms werenât disclosed. Eighteen traders and three administrative staff will shift to HTG as part of the deal.
HTG Capital Partners has operations in exchange-traded and OTC financial instruments. HTG specializes in spread trading strategies in products including futures, options, currencies and cash bonds.
From Crain's Chicago Business:
CHICAGO, IL --- December 14, 2009 --- HTG Capital Partners, a 100-person trading firm based in Chicago, acquired Kingstree Trading Group, which at one time accounted for 25% of stock-index futures trading at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
The acquisition by HTG highlights a seismic shift taking place in the Chicago trading world, as large firms absorb smaller ones in a technological arms race that rewards those with the fastest trading systems. Chicagoâs futures exchanges were built on open outcry, where traders stand cheek by jowl, shouting and
gesturing to buy and sell futures contracts tied to the price of meats and grains. By the turn of the 21st century, many futures exchanges overseas had begun to handle most or all of their
business electronically â but in Chicago, floor-trading still dominated. Chuck McElveen, Kingstreeâs Founder, was an early convert to the electronic trading model, and his firm appealed to floor traders seeking a place to transfer their face-to-face skills to a computer-based environment. Kingstreeâs traders, once numbering as many as 60, were the earliest traders of CMEâs electronic S&P 500 index futures and helped make them into the marketâs most active stock-index-based contracts. âKingstree was one of the early movers in shaping todayâs proprietary trading business, and this merger adds a highly talented group of traders and managers to the HTG organization,â HTG CEO William McNeill said in a statement.
In recent years Kingstreeâs business has dwindled, eclipsed by bigger firms with ever more sophisticated computer-driven trading styles. Mr. McElveenâs decision to sell the bulk of his firmâs business to a bigger firm reflects that new reality.
Financial terms werenât disclosed. Eighteen traders and three administrative staff will shift to HTG as part of the deal.
HTG Capital Partners has operations in exchange-traded and OTC financial instruments. HTG specializes in spread trading strategies in products including futures, options, currencies and cash bonds.