AKJ Group Selects TNS

Using TNS Secure Trading Extranet, AKJ will connect clients to its order routing systems and integrated electronic trading service - the AKJ ExNet. Linking software houses with clients and financial institutions with brokerages, AKJ ExNet provides access via equities, derivatives and Forex to more than 50 global exchanges including NASDAQ, NYSE, Euronext and LSE through a single point of contact. AKJ will ally itself with TNS Secure Trading Extranet for the ExNet service. Partnering with TNS, AKJ can connect institutions already on the Extranet to ExNet within three days. This represents a significant improvement in service as previously, establishing a connection using a dedicated leased line could take up to six weeks. Because AKJ provides services for direct market access trading, reliability and performance were key issues. TNS Extranet is designed to have no single point of failure. As it is a dedicated, private network, transaction volumes are proactively monitored by TNS to make sure that AKJ has enough capacity to ensure high-speed transmission. TNS Secure Trading Extranet is a secure and reliable network supporting Straight Through Processing between trading partners globally. With 70 secure points-of-presence worldwide and more than 950 financial community connected end points, TNS Secure Trading Extranet is widely recognized as one of the leading global networks for electronic trading. The arrangement with AKJ supports TNS plans for further growth in the securities and investments markets. Established in 1995 as a broker advising large European hedge funds trading in global markets, AKJ developed a network connecting institutions to the fragmented European market. Over ten years, the company has cultivated a global customer base providing execution of high volumes of transactions at low cost.