Description: High-frequency trading played a supporting role in the mini market crash last spring that saw the Dow Jones industrial average plunge 600 points in 15 minutes, and yet most people know very little about this type of high-speed automated trading
Source: CBS 60 Minutes
Date: 10/10/2010
A rare look inside the secretive world of “high-frequency trading,” a controversial technique the SEC is scrutinizing in which computers can make thousands of stock trades in less than a second.
Questions for discussion:
- Would you classify the these high speed trading systems as functional informational systems?
- Can you identify any downsides to using these sophisticated information systems to make financial transactions?
- Who should make the decisions and regulations regarding these high speed trading systems?