BellSouth Helps Trading DeskBellSouth Helps Trading Desk

MT. PLEASANT, S.C. -- Automated Trading Desk, LLC (ATD), a pioneer of automated limit-order trading technology, currently accounts for two to three percent of Nasdaq’s volume, and in 2002 had its first 100+ million-share day.

Instead of operating on Wall Street, the company is headquartered at 11 eWall Street in Mount Pleasant, S.C., where its 68,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility and next-generation communications infrastructure has the capacity to process up to four billion shares per day. ATD’s campus spans 22 acres, with redundant communication and power feeds, and the building is constructed to withstand hurricane winds of 135 miles per hour as well as fires and seismic conditions.

“Automated Trading Desk provides a significant amount of liquidity to the marketplace by placing limit-orders for institutional clients, as well as on our own behalf, for an average of 65 million shares per day for 2003” said Jonathan Butler, Chief Technology Officer of ATD. “Communications and secure, reliable connections to all the major trading venues are at the center of everything we do.”

BellSouth supports ATD with critical communications capabilities necessary to run its business effectively. BellSouth is providing comprehensive voice and data solutions for Automated Trading Desk, allowing the financial services company to offer secure and reliable trading. ATD also uses BellSouth high-speed data connections to secure faster trading turnaround time for customers across the U.S.

In order to leverage the speed and accuracy of its technology, ATD created an automated platform, known as the Brokered Order Routing Gateway (BORG). The system manages and monitors all parts of the trading process and is responsible for approximately 95% of the orders that are serviced by ATD daily.

“We maintain redundant connections to all of the major trading venues, as well as directly to the SFTI (Secure Financial Transaction Infrastructure) network, for enhanced security and reliability” said Jorge Riano, Director of Data Center & Operations at ATD. “Due to its unmatched commitment to customer service and the integrity of its network, BellSouth is ATD’s preferred provider for these key real-time links, as well as other crucial components of our communications infrastructure.”

In addition to providing long distance data connections from South Carolina to major trading venues throughout the country, BellSouth’s complete solution provides advanced voice options for ATD including multiple voice switches and voice over IP (VoIP) capability using Cisco IP Communications solutions. Just as important as its data connections, it is imperative that ATD can receive and make voice calls to ensure constant communication between its clients and financial institutions. All of ATD’s voice and data traffic is routed over a fully redundant, BellSouth fiber optic ring. The optical ring automatically reroutes traffic in the event of a fiber cut to provide the highest level of business continuity.

“Financial institutions are in need of more secure and reliable solutions, backed by outstanding customer service, to meet the requirements of their clients and regulators,” said Harry Lightsey, state president of South Carolina for BellSouth. “BellSouth has the network and employees in place to deliver these capabilities and continue to serve as the trusted provider for companies such as ATD.”

Part of BellSouth’s strategy to better meet the needs of business customers involves focusing on several key vertical markets, one of which is finance. BellSouth continues to work with businesses, like ATD, to develop customized solutions to meet the operational needs of the financial industry, while successfully addressing additional market segments.

BellSouth Corp.