October 27, 2009
I strongly believe that any practices that serve to put the retail trader at a disadvantage to professional traders, whether intentional or not, must be halted. Flash Orders are a simple means of allowing front trading to the detriment of many traders, with retail traders held to the biggest disadvantage. There is no transparency, efficiency, or clearing objective met by the continued rule exemption for flash orders. Eliminating Flash Orders will not harm the market in any way, but will instead provide a more balanced field to all who trade and invest. Any and all mechanisms that are used to the detriment of retail traders to the unfair advantage of professional trading firms need to be eliminated.