KCG Holdings
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial services |
| Predecessor | Knight Capital Group, Inc., GETCO Holding Company, LLC |
| Founded | July 1, 2013 |
| Defunct | July 20, 2017 |
| Fate | Acquired by Virtu Financial |
| Headquarters | Jersey City , United States |
Area served | Global |
Key people | Daniel Coleman (CEO) |
| Products | Market making, high-frequency trading, electronic trade execution, institutional sales and trading |
Number of employees | 1,800 (2013) |
| Website | www |
KCG Holdings, Inc. operated as a global financial services organization based in the United States, with expertise in market making, high-frequency trading, electronic trade execution, and institutional sales and trading activities. The firm was created on July 1, 2013, through the consolidation of Knight Capital Group, Inc. and GETCO Holding Company, LLC. At the time of the merger, global growth equity firm General Atlantic, which owned a 25% interest in GETCO, contributed additional capital and appointed managing director Rene Kern to the company's board.
On April 20, 2017, KCG Holdings reached an agreement to be acquired by Virtu Financial for $20 per share in cash, representing a deal valued near $1.4 billion.
History
Getco LLC was established in 1999 by former Chicago floor traders Stephen Schuler and Daniel Tierney. Prior to merging, the company employed approximately 400 individuals. Its primary focus was electronic market making and high-frequency trading, complemented by execution algorithms and operation of a dark pool through Getco Execution Services.
Founded in 1995 as Knight/Trimark Group, Knight Capital Group had a workforce of around 1,400 at the time of the merger. The company specialized mainly in market-making for U.S. equities serving retail brokerages, along with electronic execution services, operation of dark pools, and institutional sales and trading. In August 2012, the firm experienced a significant technological malfunction known as the "Knightmare," which resulted in a $460 million loss within a single day and brought the company close to insolvency. Subsequently, in December 2012, Knight agreed to be acquired by Getco LLC. Stockholders approved this merger on June 25, 2013.
The formal completion of the merger and launch of KCG Holdings was commemorated on July 8, 2013, when CEO Daniel Coleman rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
In 2014, KCG Holdings purchased 27 million shares of Platinum Studios.
In January 2015, KCG divested its foreign exchange trading platform KCG Hotspot to BATS Global Markets for $365 million.
Virtu Financial announced its $1.4 billion cash acquisition of KCG Holdings in April 2017, with the transaction closing on July 20, 2017.
See also
- Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. v. Manning, a Supreme Court case from 2016 concerning allegations of naked short selling involving KCG and Merrill Lynch.
External links
- Official website: www.kcgbtc.com
- Articles with short description
- Financial services companies established in 2013
- American companies established in 2013
- Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange
- Financial services companies based in New Jersey
- Companies based in Jersey City, New Jersey
- 2017 mergers and acquisitions
- Companies based in London, United Kingdom