Sutton Online, the automated trading division of diversified financial services firm Global Capital Partners, is to purchase interests in two European software developers. The US-based company with plans for expansion into Europe is to acquire a majority position in software house Total Online, and a minority interest in Total Solutions, a developer of front and back office financial management software.
Total Online is a recently formed developer of automated trading systems for buying and selling securities on various worldwide exchanges. The software can now be used for trading on the New York, Prague, Vienna, Frankfurt and Amsterdam's exchanges, as well as Nasdaq.
Total Solutions, formed in 1996, develops software that provides financial institutions with front office, back office and portfolio management, together with financial accounting systems.
Gregory Frank, president of Sutton Online says: "To be a full competitor in the online trading industry today, it is imperative to own the trading software source code. Our ability to now offer private label point and click software to broker/dealers, along with back office solutions and custom programs, enables us to compete on an equal footing with our larger competitors. One of our first markets targeted will be the rapidly-growing investment market in Germany."
Martin Sumichrast, chairman and CEO of Global Capital Partners, adds: "It is my opinion that one of the driving factors behind Charles Schwab's $488 million valuation on the acquisition of CyBerCorp is the proprietary trading software that CyBerCorp owned. With our steadily increasing trade count, this acquisition places us another step closer to commanding an attractive valuation of Sutton Online."
Sutton Online offers order routing, level II software and data, Internet service and training for online investors including individuals, hedge funds and money managers. In May, the company established a German outpost, Sutton Online Europe, to provide a professional-level online trading platform and order-routing service for European and US equity trades.