European dark pools expand in face of rules limiting their use

London

STOCK trading grew faster in European dark pools last year than it did on public exchanges, signalling that a regulatory campaign to clamp down on the practice is struggling to change behaviour.

The region's dark pools - venues that don't display prices before trades take place - enjoyed a 45 per cent jump in the value of trading they handled in 2015, according to broker and equity-market operator Investment Technology Group Inc (ITG). Public exchanges saw a 28 per cent increase.

Dark venues are expanding more quickly than their lit counterparts, even though the European Union is planning to impose tough restrictions on them. The EU institutions are concerned that public markets will become less efficient and share prices less accurate if dark pools grab a sizeable share of equity trading. At the same time, US regulators have fined several dark venues, including ITG, for rul…