Clear Street Expands into Algo Trading by Acquiring Fox River

Clear Street, a cloud-native fintech firm, has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Instinet's Fox River algorithmic trading (algo trading) business. Fox River offers a comprehensive suite of algo execution solutions for US and Canadian equities, catering to both buy and sell-side firms, including many leading quant-driven funds.

Chris Pento, CEO and Co-Founder of Clear Street, pointed out the strategic importance of this acquisition, stating, "Fox River's leading algorithmic trading capabilities add another key component to the value chain we offer. Known for their high-performance algos, white-glove service, and flexible platform, Fox River has a longstanding and loyal client base, built on proven and respected products and services. This transaction further bolsters our suite of products tailored toward quantitatively focused clients. We welcome the Fox River team to Clear Street."

Gerry Milligan, President & Head of the Americas at Instinet, also highlighted the mutual benefits of the transaction. "This transaction provides clear benefits to both firms," he said. "It allows Instinet to streamline our existing Execution Services offering and continue to concentrate our investment efforts on our core Algorithmic platform. Additionally, we believe that the Fox River platform will be a great complement to Clear Street's product suite."

The integration of Fox River into Clear Street is expected to enhance Clear Street's electronic trading capabilities and complement its cloud-native prime brokerage platform. Clear Street Investment Banking advised on the transaction, which is anticipated to close in Q3 2024, subject to customary closing conditions. Financial terms were not disclosed.

In April, Clear Street announced its availability of professional clearing services for registered market makers in listed U.S. equities and options, marking the first successful entry into the professional clearing market​ in close to a decade.