Citadel's high-frequency trading unit brought in about $1B in profits in 2008. The revelation,...

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The Hammer Comments (2992)
 
$1 billion is big bucks. who is the loser other side of the trade?
hhmmm?
2 Oct 2009, 01:53 PM Reply Like

Tony Petroski Comments (6373)
 
I'm guessing.

The Madoff victims knew that their 17% a year was phony, but they assumed Madoff was skimming the public in the Citadel/GS way.
2 Oct 2009, 01:57 PM Reply Like

tunaman4u2 Comments (2377)
 
End stimulus... clearly the money is there, heard this A.M that 3.5 trillion on sidelines... why print money? Money isn't hiring anyone!
2 Oct 2009, 02:03 PM Reply Like

First Adopter Comments (89)
 
Doesn't Citadel handle a huge chunk of the order flow for Etrade retail brokerage investors? I hope they are getting the best executions. I doubt it with Citadel's returns in this area.
2 Oct 2009, 02:03 PM Reply Like

Vuke Comments (1487)
 
Hammer: The losers are you and I. And everyone else in retail.

On Oct 02 01:53 PM The Hammer wrote:

> $1 billion is big bucks. who is the loser other side of the trade?
>
> hhmmm?
2 Oct 2009, 02:05 PM Reply Like

WSGuy Comments (5)
 
This is a sad joke that Wall Street is playing on America. Leeches do the same on flesh.
2 Oct 2009, 02:05 PM Reply Like

davidbdc Comments (2991)
 
Not sure I agree with the comments. I'm not a day trader, but I do execute perhaps 30 or 40 trades a year. I buy or sell at a set price that I feel comfortable with. Why do I care that firms are playing computer games with each other? All this money used to go to the MM's and now they have competition from firms with computers doing the same thing.

There have been a few times where I've had say 7,000 stock orders filled with 70 100 share transactions - I have no doubt it was a computer selling to me. It was no different from a 12,000 share transaction filled by a sell order for 12,000 shares. I set my price and the transaction occured.

Limit orders remove any possibility of foul play IMO.
3 Oct 2009, 04:49 AM Reply Like

Ricard Comments (3829)
 
Incorrect. One way firms make money off of you and me is the spread. With limit orders, you wait until the spread becomes favorable for the firm, who then takes advantage of it. You get your price, but the firm still gets its spread. You still got screwed, you just don't know it.


On Oct 03 04:49 AM davidbdc wrote:

> Not sure I agree with the comments. I'm not a day trader, but I
> do execute perhaps 30 or 40 trades a year. I buy or sell at a set
> price that I feel comfortable with. Why do I care that firms are
> playing computer games with each other? All this money used to go
> to the MM's and now they have competition from firms with computers
> doing the same thing.
>
> There have been a few times where I've had say 7,000 stock orders
> filled with 70 100 share transactions - I have no doubt it was a
> computer selling to me. It was no different from a 12,000 share
> transaction filled by a sell order for 12,000 shares. I set my price
> and the transaction occured.
>
> Limit orders remove any possibility of foul play IMO.
8 Oct 2009, 10:28 PM Reply Like