BATS Global Markets

Cummings publicized the BATS service by sending emails to companies highlighting the niche that could be carved out by trading on platforms other than the big two—NASDAQ and NYSE.

[6] He noted that the consolidation of the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ eliminated competition and they raised prices for their services.

[7] Among the plans it had to draw customers was to offer free listings to companies with shares that traded a certain amount each day.

[6][9] Under the leadership of Ratterman, in March 2008, BATS entered the European equities markets by establishing a multilateral trading facility (MTF) to compete on a pan-European basis against the incumbent securities exchanges.

[10][11] In February 2011, BATS Global Markets agreed to buy Chi-X Europe, a competitor and largest pan-European MTF at the time, for $300 million.

Ratterman had previously held both roles but received the "unanimous support" of the directors to retain the positions of CEO and president.

[20] In July 2012, BATS named Paul Atkins, a former U.S. Securities and Exchange commissioner, to the role of non-executive chairman of its board of directors.

[29] In November 2008, BATS converted its ECN to a national securities exchange, BZX, which allowed BATS to participate in and earn market data fees from the United States consolidated tape plans, reduce its clearing costs, and operate a primary listings business.

In February 2010, BATS expanded into a new asset class by offering trading of listed equity options on BZX.

[31] In 2014, company president William O'Brien disputed assertions in the book Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt.

He was quoted in The New York Times as saying about the book's author, "Michael Lewis clearly has a blind side, as we've just discovered".