RedSky Hires Former Nasdaq Exec

In a move to take its direct-market-access business to the next level, RedSky Financial, a Chicago-based broker-dealer specializing in multi-asset trading, hired Robert Fitzsimmons as CEO.

Fitzsimmons, 43, previously served (from 2003 to 2004) as CEO of NQLX, a now-defunct joint venture in single-stock futures between The Nasdaq Stock Market and the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (now part of Euronext.liffe). After the NQLX joint venture was shut down in December 2004 - and its open interest was transferred to One Chicago, the industry's current single-stock futures marketplace - Fitzsimmons served as an independent industry consultant.

Fitzsimmons joined NQLX from The Nasdaq Stock Market, where he was an executive director. Prior to that, he created the financial futures group at Nomura Securities International in 1990, growing the business into a leading futures commission merchant (FCM).

In his new position, Fitzsimmons is responsible for strategy and finances. He reports to RedSky's board of directors and the company's cofounders, Brent Starck, Joseph Perry and Stefano Durdic.

"I'm kind of rounding out the current management structure," Fitzsimmons says. "I'm trying to build upon the success that they've had and then help them focus on the direct-access clients who are seekers of the multi-access trading solutions."

So far, the trading platform, R3 (named after a nautical term - red, right, return), is a big hit among proprietary trading shops and hedge funds because it provides connectivity to all of the equity markets, options and futures exchanges, foreign exchange markets and cash bond markets, according to Fitzsimmons. "It provides a solution for firms that are looking for a single API for connectivity," he says.

The RedSky platform focuses on latency-sensitive traders who emphasize the speed of their transactions, Fitzsimmons explains. "It's nonstop development work," he continues, noting that the exchanges are constantly updating their technology and changing their interfaces.

Fitzsimmons notes that customers can outsource all their connectivity to RedSky, which also performs programming for customers that want to customize their interfaces or use a different calculation method. Ivy is Editor-at-Large for Advanced Trading and Wall Street & Technology. Ivy is responsible for writing in-depth feature articles, daily blogs and news articles with a focus on automated trading in the capital markets. As an industry expert, Ivy has reported on a myriad ... View Full Bio