425 1 tm225679d2_425.htm 425

 

Filed by TradeStation Group, Inc.
Pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act of 1933
and deemed filed pursuant to Rule 14a-12
under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Subject Company: Quantum FinTech Acquisition Corporation
Commission File No.: 001-40009 

 

 

TradeStation Reports Brokerage Metrics for February 2022

 

PLANTATION, FL, March 7, 2022 – TradeStation Group, Inc. (“TradeStation”), the parent company of award-winning self-clearing online brokerages for trading stocks, ETFs, equity and index options, futures, futures options and cryptocurrencies, today reported certain monthly business metrics for February 2022:

 

·209,291 Total Customer Accounts, 50.2% higher than prior year
·19,750 Gross New Accounts, 85.3% higher than prior year
·242,846 Daily Average Revenue Trades (DARTs), 15.6% lower than prior year
·$11.6 billion Total Customer Assets, 14.8% higher than prior year
·$2.9 billion of Total Customer Cash, 3.2% higher than prior year

 

Comparisons to the prior year mean a comparison of the month (or month-end, as applicable) of February 2022 to the month (or month-end, as applicable) of February 2021.

 

Total Customer Accounts is the number of customer brokerage accounts with a positive account balance at the end of the period presented.

 

Gross New Accounts is the total number of approved customer brokerage accounts funded during the period presented, and includes accounts funded during the period presented that were opened and approved (but not funded) in a prior period, as well as accounts that were opened and funded in a prior period, but then went to a zero balance and were subtracted from Total Customer Accounts, but then were again funded during the period presented.

 

Daily Average Revenue Trades (DARTs) means daily average revenue trades made by customers. A revenue trade means one completed customer equities, options, futures, or crypto trade, regardless of the number of shares, contracts, or units included in such trade, and includes trades completed under TradeStation’s “zero commission” plans (which are supported by payment-for-order-flow, or “PFOF,” revenue). Each “side” of a futures trade is counted as one revenue trade. Partial fills of an equities order on the same day are aggregated and counted as one revenue trade. DARTs are calculated by dividing the total number of revenue trades in the period presented by the total number of “Trading Days” in the period presented. A “Trading Day” means each day during the period presented that trading is open on NYSE and Nasdaq markets. A day on which such markets close early, such as the Friday after Thanksgiving, is counted as half a day. DARTs is a general indicator, as each of the asset classes TradeStation offers has a different fee structure and level of profitability.

 

Total Customer Assets is total cash and assets held in customer brokerage accounts at the end of the period presented.

 

Total Customer Cash is the aggregate cash held in customer brokerage accounts (equities and futures accounts – no cash is held in customer cryptocurrency accounts) at the end of the period presented.

 

 

 

 

Included in both Total Customer Accounts and Gross New Accounts are customer cryptocurrency accounts opened and funded through a marketing promotion that began December 20, 2021 in which TradeStation makes the initial account funding for the customer (BTC equal to $10.00). Cryptocurrency accounts opened under this promotion represented 12,541 of the 13,178 total gross new cryptocurrency accounts added in the month of February 2022. TradeStation intends to monitor and evaluate the success of this crypto account-opening promotion to decide if and how long it should be continued, or be continued on a modified or different basis, including by evaluating the extent to which these TradeStation-initially-funded cryptocurrency accounts receive additional deposits from, and account revenues generated by, these customers.

 

More information, including historical results for each of the above metrics, are attached.

 

About TradeStation Group, Inc.

 

TradeStation has, for decades, provided innovative fintech decision-support analysis and order-placement tools that support self-directed traders and investors in their journeys to claim their financial edge. TradeStation provides award-winning trading and analysis platforms and self-clearing online brokerage services for stocks, ETFs, equity and index options, commodity and financial futures, futures options, and cryptocurrencies. These trading platforms are accessible on desktop, Web and mobile, as well as via API technologies which seamlessly provide access to TradeStation’s brokerage environment through third-party platforms. TradeStation’s offerings also include deep and growing learning content designed to build confidence among those new to investing and hone the skills of seasoned traders.

 

TradeStation Securities, Inc. (Member NYSE, FINRA, SIPC, NSCC, DTC, OCC, NFA & CME) offers self-clearing equities, options, futures and futures options brokerage services as a licensed securities broker-dealer and futures commission merchant (FCM) and is a member of major equities and futures exchanges in the United States. TradeStation Crypto, Inc. offers self-clearing cryptocurrency brokerage services under federal and state money services business, money-transmitter and similar registrations and licenses. TradeStation Crypto, Inc. is not subject to NFA’s regulatory oversight and examinations.

 

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

 

This communication contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended, that reflect TradeStation’s current views with respect to, among other things, the future operations and financial performance of TradeStation. Forward-looking statements in this communication may be identified by the use of words such as “continue,” “intends,” and “should,” and similar terms and phrases. Forward-looking statements contained in this communication include TradeStation’s potential decisions regarding the success of marketing campaigns and approaches, including the success of its crypto account-opening/marketing promotion, and whether crypto customer accounts added through such promotion will provide further funding or deposits to, or trade in, such accounts. The forward-looking statements contained in this communication are based on the current expectations of TradeStation and its management and are subject to risks and uncertainties. No assurance can be given that future developments affecting TradeStation will be those that are anticipated. Actual results may differ materially from current expectations due to changes in global, regional or local economic, business, competitive, market, regulatory and other factors, risks and uncertainties, including those under the heading “Risk Factors” in publicly-available SEC filings made by TradeStation. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of the assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible to predict all of them.

 

 

 

 

Proposed Business Combination

 

As previously announced, TradeStation Group, Inc. (the “Company”) and Quantum FinTech Acquisition Corporation (“Quantum”) have entered into agreements to effect a business combination (the “Business Combination”). This presentation does not constitute (i) a solicitation of a proxy, consent or authorization with respect to any securities or in respect of the Business Combination or (ii) an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation to purchase, any securities of the Company, Quantum, the combined company or any of their respective affiliates. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or an exemption therefrom, nor shall any sale of securities in any states or jurisdictions in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction be effected. No securities commission or securities regulatory authority in the United States or any other jurisdiction has in any way passed upon the merits of the Business Combination or the accuracy or adequacy of this presentation.

 

In connection with the proposed Business Combination between the Company and Quantum, the Company has filed a registration statement on Form S-4 (the “Registration Statement”) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) that includes a proxy statement / prospectus relating to the offer of the securities to be issued to Quantum. Investors, security holders and other interested persons are advised to read the Registration Statement and proxy statement / prospectus and any amendments thereto, and other relevant documents that are filed with the SEC carefully and in their entirety because they will contain important information about the Company, Quantum and the proposed Business Combination. The definitive proxy statement / prospectus will be mailed to stockholders of Quantum as of a record date to be established for voting on the proposed Business Combination. Investors, security holders and other interested persons will also be able to obtain copies of the Registration Statement and other documents containing important information about the Business Combination and the parties to the Business Combination once such documents are filed with the SEC, without charge, at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, or by directing a request to: Quantum FinTech Acquisition Corp., 4221 W. Boy Scout Blvd., Suite 300, Tampa, FL 33607, Attention: Investor Relations or by email at IR@qftacorp.com.

 

Quantum and the Company, their respective directors and executive officers and certain investors may be considered participants in the solicitation of proxies with respect to the proposed Business Combination under the rules of the SEC. Information about the directors and executive officers of Quantum and their ownership is set forth in Quantum’s filings with the SEC, including its final prospectus relating to its initial public offering in February 2021, and the Registration Statement filed by the Company, which are available free of charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Additional information regarding the persons who may, under the rules of the SEC, be deemed participants in the solicitation of the Quantum shareholders in connection with the proposed Business Combination, including the Company’s directors and executive officers and certain investors, will be contained in the Registration Statement for the Business Combination when available.

 

Contacts

 

Investors:

ir@tradestation.com

 

Media:

Madison Roberts

281-684-9857

madison.roberts@fleishman.com

 

 

 

 

Certain Business Metrics

 

Fiscal Year-Ended March 31, 2022 Business Metrics1

 

(Total Customer Assets and Total
Customer Cash, in Millions)
  Apr  May  Jun  Jul  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec  Jan  Feb  Mar
Trading Days2  21.0  20.0  22.0  21.0  22.0  21.0  21.0  20.5  22.0  20.0  19.0  23.0
Total Customer Accounts3  150,319  153,885  156,961  158,612  160,532   162,751  165,811  170,597  178,863  195,969  209,291   
Gross New Accounts4  8,176  7,380  6,737  5,596  5,564  5,663  6,528  8,701  12,183  21,052  19,750   
Total Customer Assets5  10,842  10,746  11,359  11,179  11,780  11,269  12,393  12,344  12,286  11,505  11,605   
Total Customer Cash6  2,924  2,889  2,886  2,892  2,915  2,883  2,937  2,915  2,984  2,962  2,909   
DARTs7  217,317    213,286  213,008      202,925  197,460    209,704  210,529  231,653  202,857  239,227  242,846   

 

1 TradeStation’s fiscal year is from April 1 through March 31.

2 A “Trading Day” means each day during the period presented that trading is open on NYSE and NASDAQ markets. A day on which such markets close early, such as the Friday after Thanksgiving, is counted as half a day.

3 “Total Customer Accounts” is the number of customer brokerage accounts with a positive account balance at the end of the period presented.

4 “Gross New Accounts” is the total number of approved customer brokerage accounts funded during the period presented, and includes accounts funded during the period presented that were opened and approved (but not funded) in a prior period, as well as accounts that were opened and funded in a prior period, but then went to a zero balance and were subtracted from Total Customer Accounts, but then were again funded during the period presented. Included in Gross New Accounts are customer cryptocurrency accounts opened and funded through a marketing promotion that began December 20, 2021 in which TradeStation makes the initial account funding for the customer (BTC equal to $10.00). Cryptocurrency accounts opened under this promotion represented 12,541 of the 13,178 total gross new cryptocurrency accounts added in the month of February 2022, and 30,941 of the 33,050 total gross new cryptocurrency accounts added during the period commencing December 20, 2021 and ending February 28, 2022. TradeStation intends to monitor and evaluate the success of this cryptocurrency account-opening promotion to decide if and how long it should be continued, or be continued on a modified or different basis, including by evaluating the extent to which these TradeStation-initially-funded crypto accounts receive additional deposits from, and account revenues generated by, these customers.

5 “Total Customer Assets” is total cash and assets held in customer brokerage accounts at the end of the period presented.

6 “Total Customer Cash” is the aggregate cash held in customer brokerage accounts (equities and futures accounts – no cash is held in customer cryptocurrency accounts) at the end of the period presented.

7 “DARTs” means daily average revenue trades made by our customers. A revenue trade means one completed customer equities, options, futures, or crypto trade, regardless of the number of shares, contracts, or units included in such trade, and includes trades completed under TradeStation’s “zero commission” plans (which are supported by payment-for-order-flow, or “PFOF,” revenue). Each “side” of a futures trade is counted as one revenue trade. Partial fills of an equities order on the same day are aggregated and counted as one revenue trade. DARTs are calculated by dividing the total number of revenue trades in the period presented by the total number of Trading Days in the period presented. DARTs is a general indicator, as each of the asset classes TradeStation offers has a different fee structure and level of profitability.

 

 

 

 

Certain Business Metrics

 

Fiscal Year-Ended March 31, 2021 Business Metrics1

 

(Total Customer Assets and Total
Customer Cash, in Millions)
  Apr  May  Jun  Jul  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec  Jan  Feb  Mar
Trading Days2  21.0  20.0  22.0  22.0   21.0  21.0  22.0  19.5  21.5  19.0  19.0  23.0
Total Customer Accounts3  111,317  114,289  118,219  119,222   122,843  126,078  128,428  128,641  131,431  135,402  139,354  145,887
Gross New Accounts4  6,435  5,933  6,446  5,544   6,371  5,952  5,198  4,589  5 ,360  6,615  10,658  9,988
Total Customer Assets5  6,028  6,303  6,702  7,264   7,895  7,826  7,738  8,722  9,259  9,856  10,106  10,336
Total Customer Cash6  2,157  2,169  2,235  2,365   2,457  2,405  2,437  2,552  2,641  2,796  2,820  2,795
DARTs7  176,967  178,577  201,831  199,988   202,220  255,006  231,096  249,533  237,796  273,166  287,875  271,075

 

1 TradeStation’s fiscal year is from April 1 through March 31.

2 A “Trading Day” means each day during the period presented that trading is open on NYSE and NASDAQ markets. A day on which such markets close early, such as the Friday after Thanksgiving, is counted as half a day.

3 “Total Customer Accounts” is the number of customer brokerage accounts with a positive account balance at the end of the period presented.

4 “Gross New Accounts” is the total number of approved customer brokerage accounts funded during the period presented, and includes accounts funded during the period presented that were opened and approved (but not funded) in a prior period, as well as accounts that were opened and funded in a prior period, but then went to a zero balance and were subtracted from Total Customer Accounts, but then were again funded during the period presented.

5 “Total Customer Assets” is total cash and assets held in customer brokerage accounts at the end of the period presented.

6 “Total Customer Cash” is the aggregate cash held in customer brokerage accounts (equities and futures accounts – no cash is held in customer cryptocurrency accounts) at the end of the period presented.

7 “DARTs” means daily average revenue trades made by our customers. A revenue trade means one completed customer equities, options, futures, or crypto trade, regardless of the number of shares, contracts, or units included in such trade, and includes trades completed under TradeStation’s “zero commission” plans (which are supported by payment-for-order-flow, or “PFOF,” revenue). Each “side” of a futures trade is counted as one revenue trade. Partial fills of an equities order on the same day are aggregated and counted as one revenue trade. DARTs are calculated by dividing the total number of revenue trades in the period presented by the total number of Trading Days in the period presented. DARTs is a general indicator, as each of the asset classes TradeStation offers has a different fee structure and level of profitability.

 

 

 

 

Certain Business Metrics

 

Fiscal Year-Ended March 31, 2020 Business Metrics1

 

(Total Customer Assets and Total
Customer Cash, in Millions)
  Apr  May  Jun  Jul  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec  Jan  Feb  Mar
Trading Days2  21.0  22.0  20.0  21.5  22.0  20.0  23.0  19.5  20.5   21.0  19.0  22.0
Total Customer Accounts3  98,054  98,706  99,826  101,362  102,932  103,792  104,138  102,654  102,601   103,425  104,128  107,692
Gross New Accounts4  2,880  2,751  2,643  3,096  3,137  2,401  2,460  2,129  2,250   3,080  3,094  5,622
Total Customer Assets5  5,627  5,355  5,556  5,622  5,647  5,627  5,693  5,843  5,969   6,005  5,735  5,420
Total Customer Cash6  2,093  2,034  2,084  2,079  2,090  2,122  2,075  2,049  2,090   2,107  2,077  2,089
DARTs7  69,696  88,938  80,292  79,185  96,844  84,991  82,924  80,059  76,830   105,140  131,609  182,978

 

1 TradeStation’s fiscal year is from April 1 through March 31.

2 A “Trading Day” means each day during the period presented that trading is open on NYSE and NASDAQ markets. A day on which such markets close early, such as the Friday after Thanksgiving, is counted as half a day.

3 “Total Customer Accounts” is the number of customer brokerage accounts with a positive account balance at the end of the period presented.

4 “Gross New Accounts” is the total number of approved customer brokerage accounts funded during the period presented, and includes accounts funded during the period presented that were opened and approved (but not funded) in a prior period, as well as accounts that were opened and funded in a prior period, but then went to a zero balance and were subtracted from Total Customer Accounts, but then were again funded during the period presented.

5 “Total Customer Assets” is total cash and assets held in customer brokerage accounts at the end of the period presented.

6 “Total Customer Cash” is the aggregate cash held in customer brokerage accounts (equities and futures accounts – no cash is held in customer cryptocurrency accounts) at the end of the period presented.

7 “DARTs” means daily average revenue trades made by our customers. A revenue trade means one completed customer equities, options, futures, or crypto trade, regardless of the number of shares, contracts, or units included in such trade, and includes trades completed under TradeStation’s “zero commission” plans (which are supported by payment-for-order-flow, or “PFOF,” revenue). Each “side” of a futures trade is counted as one revenue trade. Partial fills of an equities order on the same day are aggregated and counted as one revenue trade. DARTs are calculated by dividing the total number of revenue trades in the period presented by the total number of Trading Days in the period presented. DARTs is a general indicator, as each of the asset classes TradeStation offers has a different fee structure and level of profitability.

 

 

 

 

Certain Business Metrics

 

Fiscal Year-Ended March 31, 2019 Business Metrics1

 

(Total Customer Assets and Total
Customer Cash, in Millions)
  Apr  May  Jun  Jul  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec  Jan  Feb  Mar
Trading Days2  21.0  22.0  21.0  20.5  23.0  19.0  23.0  20.5  18.5  21.0  19.0  21.0
Total Customer Accounts3  82,589  84,191  85,396  86,879  88,494  89,850  91,597  91,959   92,878  94,449   95,559  96,972
Gross New Accounts4  2,756  3,051  2,531  2,770  2,955  2,642  3,110  2,529  2,415  2,987  2,657  2,930
Total Customer Assets5  5,220  5,417  5,470  5,557  5,786  5,759  5,457  5,476  5,101  5,422  5,486  5,534
Total Customer Cash6  2,033  2,022  2,051  2,050  2,071  2,048  2,089  2,072  2,054  2,096  2,095  2,067
DARTs7  83,823  75,877  74,042  69,362  66,006  73,356  92,082  85,860  92,583  81,248  74,217  80,129

 

1 TradeStation’s fiscal year is from April 1 through March 31.

2 A “Trading Day” means each day during the period presented that trading is open on NYSE and NASDAQ markets. A day on which such markets close early, such as the Friday after Thanksgiving, is counted as half a day.

3 “Total Customer Accounts” is the number of customer brokerage accounts with a positive account balance at the end of the period presented.

4 “Gross New Accounts” is the total number of approved customer brokerage accounts funded during the period presented, and includes accounts funded during the period presented that were opened and approved (but not funded) in a prior period, as well as accounts that were opened and funded in a prior period, but then went to a zero balance and were subtracted from Total Customer Accounts, but then were again funded during the period presented.

5 “Total Customer Assets” is total cash and assets held in customer brokerage accounts at the end of the period presented.

6 “Total Customer Cash” is the aggregate cash held in customer brokerage accounts (equities and futures accounts – no cash is held in customer cryptocurrency accounts) at the end of the period presented.

7 “DARTs” means daily average revenue trades made by our customers. A revenue trade means one completed customer equities, options, futures, or crypto trade, regardless of the number of shares, contracts, or units included in such trade, and includes trades completed under TradeStation’s “zero commission” plans (which are supported by payment-for-order-flow, or “PFOF,” revenue). Each “side” of a futures trade is counted as one revenue trade. Partial fills of an equities order on the same day are aggregated and counted as one revenue trade. DARTs are calculated by dividing the total number of revenue trades in the period presented by the total number of Trading Days in the period presented. DARTs is a general indicator, as each of the asset classes TradeStation offers has a different fee structure and level of profitability.