March 10, 2016
Dear SEC,
I intend to use IEX so that my orders are not internalized and have a chance of executing against other investor orders as guaranteed and defined by the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934.
I think the current situation can be best described by the following analogy. It is unfair for the mean fat kid on the playground (Parasitic HFT firms) to cut in line in order to steal my money. You (SEC) are the teachers watching this. Will you stop the bad behavior by allowing a fair exchange (IEX) or simply stay quiet and allow the bully to buy you lunch with my money.
I am vehemently against latency arbitrage and quote stuffing. I applaud your efforts to fine the offending firms but I believe a fair exchange is the only viable long term solution. Further more I do not want my orders identified as being from a retail investor on BATS/EDGX, NASDAQ and NYSE.
Please support fair competition between all market participants by supporting the IEX application.
Thank you,
Nate Smith
Retail Investor