Bats Global Markets Reports Record April Options Volumes

BATS is slowly gaining market shares which is great for prop traders as this ought to pressure on other exchanges to adopt a more friendly maker/taker model.  Here's part of their press release: 

"BATS Global Markets (BATS), a global operator of securities and derivatives markets, today reported continued strong growth at BATS Options, which reported a record 3.4% matched market share in April. The company's equities businesses in the U.S. and Europe also had a solid month, reporting matched market share of 10.6% and 5.7%, respectively.

BATS operates two stock exchanges in the U.S., the BATS BZX Exchange and BYX Exchange; BATS Options; and BATS Europe, an FSA-authorised multilateral trading facility in Europe. April 2011 highlights for each of these markets are outlined below.

BATS U.S. equities markets:

• BATS U.S. equities reported matched market share of 10.6% in April 2011, up from 9.5% in the same month a year ago.
• BATS U.S. equities reported average daily matched volume of 747.8 million shares in April 2011.

BATS Options:

• BATS Options average daily matched volume in April 2011 of 504,062 contracts was a 12.4% increase from March 2011.
• BATS Options touched market share, the standard industry measurement, was 3.5%, up from 2.9% in March 2011.
• BATS Options reported matched volume of 702,259 contracts on April 15, the highest volume day of the month.

BATS Europe:

• BATS Europe reported overall European market share of 5.7% in April versus 5.3% a year ago.
• The BATS Europe Dark Pool reported record average daily turnover of €186.6 million, up from €77.3 million one year ago.
• BATS Europe recorded a new consolidated monthly market share record in the Swiss SMIM (4.9%).

Additional company news:

• In April, the company also announced its intention to appoint Mark Hemsley chief executive officer of BATS Chi-X Europeupon the close of BATS' acquisition of Chi-X Europe, which is pending regulatory approval.
• Among global equities markets operators in March 2011, BATS remained the third-largest in the world after NYSE and NASDAQ in terms of value of shares traded, well ahead of competitors in Tokyo, China, London and Germany. (April 2011information for international exchanges is not yet available.)
• In March 2011, all three of BATS' market centers ranked in the top 25 largest, in terms of notional value traded, in the world: the BZX Exchange was ranked #4, the BYX Exchange was ranked #19, and BATS Europe was ranked #25. (April 2011 information for international exchanges is not yet available.)
• The BATS 1000(SM) Index increased 450.66 points, or 3.0%, in April, ending the month at 15,587.81. The Index offers a listings-neutral, broad snapshot of the U.S. equities marketplace by tracking the performance of 1,000 securities classified in 10 important industry sectors.

About BATS

BATS Global Markets (BATS) is a leading operator of stock and options markets around the globe. BATS operates two stock exchanges in the U.S., the BATS BZX Exchange and BYX Exchange; BATS Options, a U.S. equity options market; and BATS Europe, an FSA-authorised multilateral trading facility in Europe. Each of these marketplaces is powered by BATS' innovative and proprietary technology that was developed by a dedicated core team of market and technology professionals, catering to the needs of the broker-dealer and trading community. The company is headquartered in the Kansas City, Mo., area with additional offices in New York and London. For more information, visit www.batstrading.com."

Full Press Release: 
Bats Global Markets Reports Record April Options Volumes -- KANSAS CITY, Mo., and LONDON, May 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --