Octagon extends online trading to include the London stock exchange

IRISH investors will soon have greater access to trade Irish, British and European stocks online after Dublin-based share trading platform Octagon Online announced plans to extend its service.

Mon, 12 Jul, 2004 - 01:00

Octagon launched a service to trade shares quoted on Wall Street and the Nasdaq in New York in 2002. It will offer customers the opportunity to trade shares quoted on the London stock exchange later this year.

Octagon chairman Paddy Dunning said the new service would be a milestone in the company’s development. “Octagon, together with our technology and trading platform partners, is at an advanced stage of planning for the European service and we hope to be in a position to announce firm launch details in the coming months,” said Mr Dunning.

Irish investors could until now trade Irish stocks that also had listings in New York, such as Bank of Ireland and Ryanair. Octagon’s new plans will allow them trade a bigger range of Irish stocks. Most of the major companies quoted on the Dublin stock exchange are also listed in London. The company said investors would also have access to other major European markets.

Octagon’s service is designed for active traders and fund managers and allows them to execute and confirm trades quickly, as well as benefit from

real-time quotes to facilitate trading. The company said its service was more competitive than those provided by traditional stockbrokers. Octagon’s charges start at $19.95 per trade, for trades of up to 1,000 shares. The service is offered on an execution-only basis as Octagon does not provide investment advice.

But Octagon said its platform allowed investors to use charting and analysis tools to understand market movements and help them make trading decisions.

Online share trading has become increasingly popular as investors have moved away from more cumbersome telephone or post-based dealing. Many stockbrokers offer reduced commissions and charges to encourage customers to switch to more the efficient electronic trading system.