KCG LAUNCHES DIRECT-TO-CLIENT MARKET MAKING RELATIONSHIP, ACKNOWLEDGE

 

KCG LAUNCHES DIRECT-TO-CLIENT
MARKET MAKING RELATIONSHIP, ACKNOWLEDGE

Combines Advanced Technology with Increased Transparency and Accountability to Drive Enhanced Long-term Liquidity Strategies

Acknowledge Execution Protocols to be Made Publicly Available
for All Asset Classes

JERSEY CITY, N.J. - September 10, 2015 - KCG Holdings, Inc. KCG announced today the launch of KCG Acknowledge, a direct-to-client market making relationship that combines the benefits of advanced technology with the accountability and transparency of a direct, ongoing relationship with a responsible trading partner. KCG also announced that it will publish on its website Acknowledge execution protocols and FAQs for all asset classes. KCG is the first single-broker liquidity provider to deliver this added level of transparency.

KCG Acknowledge brings KCG's bilateral direct-to-client market making businesses in Equities, U.S. Treasuries and Foreign Exchange under a single umbrella. KCG Acknowledge enables clients to tap into unique liquidity that is often hard to find in today's fragmented market. As a counterparty to every trade, Acknowledge provides accountability and transparency for our pricing and execution quality - trade after trade. 

Greg Tusar, Head of Global Execution Services said, "In today's high-speed electronic trading environment, accountability and transparency have become more important than ever - that is the vision behind KCG Acknowledge.  With Acknowledge, we have a direct, one-to-one, ongoing relationship with our clients that enables us to not only ensure they are satisfied with pricing and execution quality every time, but also allows us to connect with them on a deeper level by understanding their unique objectives and workflows - which can make a real difference in long-term trading performance."

Doug Borden, Co-Head of Equities Client Market Making, added, "As market complexity has increased and options for trading have multiplied, liquidity can be increasingly difficult to source.  Acknowledge clients can rely on a well-known, trusted counterparty that is focused on building a strong, long-term relationship. Trading used to come with this level of accountability, and with Acknowledge, it can once again."

KCG Acknowledge provides clients with access to all of KCG's global market making capabilities, including equities through Acknowledge EQ, fixed income through Acknowledge FI, and foreign exchange through Acknowledge FX.

KCG Acknowledge EQ provides access to liquidity in more than 7,600 NMS securities and minimizes information leakage, often in hard to trade names. The Acknowledge EQ team works with clients to adapt to their specific trading architectures and capacities, and seamlessly integrates with their smart order routers or dark liquidity seeking algorithms.  It complements clients' exchange and off-exchange venue routing, providing transparency and accountability in sourcing liquidity.

KCG Acknowledge FI delivers reliable and accessible liquidity by building on a long history as one of the largest market makers in U.S. Treasuries.  As a responsible counterparty for On-the-Run U.S. Treasuries, Acknowledge FI helps its clients to effectively and confidently transfer risk.  Acknowledge FI's consistently strong, firm market, with large size and competitive prices through U.S., London and Asia trading hours, provides executable internal liquidity derived from advanced valuations.   

KCG Acknowledge FX provides clients with a direct connection to a market maker in order to find the FX liquidity they need.  As principle, Acknowledge FX generates unique and competitive prices in G20 pairs and can customize pricing, tick updates, skewing and fill ratios based on the needs of our clients.

Previously, KCG's equities market making offering was marketed under the name "Knight Link" and its fixed income offering was marketed under the name "GET Direct".  Because these solutions are now part of Acknowledge, KCG will decommission both formerly-used brand names.  

Clients can access KCG Acknowledge beginning September 10, 2015.  For more information on the advantages associated with KCG Acknowledge, please visit: kcg.com/ack.

About KCG
KCG is a leading independent securities firm offering investors and clients a range of services designed to address trading needs across asset classes, product types and time zones. The firm combines advanced technology with exceptional client service across market making, agency execution and venues. KCG has multiple access points to trade global equities, fixed income, currencies and commodities via voice or automated execution. www.kcg.com

Certain statements contained herein may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "target," "estimate," "continue," "positions," "prospects" or "potential," by future conditional verbs such as "will," "would," "should," "could" or "may," or by variations of such words or by similar expressions. These "forward-looking statements" are not historical facts and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about KCG's industry, management's beliefs and certain assumptions made by management, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond our control. Any forward-looking statement contained herein speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Accordingly, readers are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict including, without limitation, risks associated with: (i) the strategic business combination (the "Mergers") of Knight Capital Group, Inc. ("Knight") and GETCO Holding Company, LLC ("GETCO"); (ii) difficulties and delays in fully realizing cost savings and other benefits of the Mergers and the inability to manage trading strategy performance and sustain revenue and earnings growth; (iii) the sale of KCG Hotspot; (iv) changes in market structure, legislative, regulatory or financial reporting rules, including the increased focus by Congress, federal and state regulators, the SRO's and the media on market structure issues, and in particular, the scrutiny of high frequency trading, alternative trading systems, market fragmentation, colocation, access to market data feeds, and remuneration arrangements such as payment for order flow and exchange fee structures; (v) past or future changes to KCG's organizational structure and management; (vi) KCG's ability to develop competitive new products and services in a timely manner and the acceptance of such products and services by KCG's customers and potential customers; (vii) KCG's ability to keep up with technological changes; (viii) KCG's ability to effectively identify and manage market risk, operational and technology risk (such as the events that affected Knight on August 1, 2012), legal risk, liquidity risk, reputational risk, counterparty and credit risk, international risk, regulatory risk, and compliance risk; (ix) the cost and other effects of material contingencies, including litigation contingencies, and any adverse judicial, administrative or arbitral rulings or proceedings; (x) the effects of increased competition and KCG's ability to maintain and expand market share; and (xi) the announced plan to relocate KCG's global headquarters from Jersey City, NJ to New York, NY. The list above is not exhaustive. Because forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, the actual results and performance of the Company may materially differ from the results expressed or implied by such statements. Given these uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Unless otherwise required by law, the Company also disclaims any obligation to update its view of any such risks or uncertainties or to announce publicly the result of any revisions to the forward-looking statements made herein. Readers should carefully review the risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including those detailed under "Certain Factors Affecting Results of Operations" in this MD&A and in "Risk Factors" in Part II, Item 1A of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, and in other reports or documents the Company files with, or furnishes to, the SEC from time to time. This information should be read in conjunction with the Company's Consolidated Financial Statements and the Notes thereto contained in the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter-ended June 30, 2015, and in other reports or documents the Company files with, or furnishes to, the SEC from time to time.

CONTACTS

Sophie Sohn	Jonathan Mairs
Communications & Marketing	Investor Relations
312-931-2299	201-356-1529
media@kcg.com	jmairs@kcg.com

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