by: John Durie From: The Australian August 17, 2012 12:00AM
The investment-banking industry is doing it tough (in relative terms), with confidence low and trading volumes falling by the day.
This may also explain why the industry is at war over what, if anything, should be done about high-frequency trading.
ASX chief Elmer Funke Kupper spent the bulk of his profit presentation yesterday trying to talk around his conflicts and about his concerns.
The worries are spreading from the immediate industry, with the country's top finance chiefs (under the banner of the Group of 100) about to conduct a major review of the issue.
An internal Australian Securities & Investments Commission taskforce is already on the job and Financial Services Minister Bill Shorten has made his concerns about market integrity known. The most influential people in Sport
Group of 100 president and Wesfarmers chief financial officer Terry Bowen said yesterday that he was worried the growth in electronic trading would undermine confidence in the stockmarket.
"I think the claimed benefits of increased liquidity may be undermined by by the negatives," Bowen said.
BTA Price at posting:
72.5¢ Sentiment: Hold Disclosure: Held
