"Algorithmic trading, also called automated trading, black-box...

"Algorithmic trading, also called automated trading, black-box trading, or algo trading, is the use of electronic platforms for entering trading orders with an algorithm which executes pre-programmed trading instructions whose variables may include timing, price, or quantity of the order, or in many cases initiating the order by a "robot", without human intervention.[1] [2]Algorithmic trading is widely used by investment banks, pension funds, mutual funds, and other buy-side (investor-driven) institutional traders, to divide large trades into several smaller trades to manage market impact and risk.[3][4] Sell side traders, such as market makers and some hedge funds, provide liquidity to the market, generating and executing orders automatically.

A special class of algorithmic trading is "high-frequency trading" (HFT), which is often most profitable during periods of high market volatility. [5] During the past years, companies such as Algorates have employed HFT strategies, recording high profits even during periods in which the markets have seen steep declines. [6]"