Bad Algo says QUOTE PIG!
What 55,997 quotes in 4.5 seconds looks like: nanex.net/aqck2/3704.html #HFT #QUOTEPIG
— badalgo (@BadAlgo) July 26, 2012
High frequency trading excess
I am inclined to agree. BadAlgo seems well acquainted with the dislocations caused by using something in ways for which it was not intended.
That sounds simplistic and Luddite-ish. It isn’t though.
Algorithmic and high frequency trading uses information technology to circumvent the structural framework of the financial marketplace. If being clever were sufficient to set up and run an HFT desk, there wouldn’t be a problem. However, setting up and running an HFT desk requires expensive colocation, access to sometimes scarce bandwidth, and a lot of trader support. That takes the form of applications programs, sometimes. It also takes the form of support grunts in the trenches.
Take a look at the job openings at many hedge funds (which are not the same as algorithmic or HFT necessarily) and most of the high frequency trading groups. Job opportunities are primarily in “LINUX Trade System Support” rather than “Quantitative Trading Research”.
