International Securities Exchange (ISE) has acquired the intellectual
property and related assets of Longitude, a New York company that
developed and patented technology for auctioning derivatives based on
economic indicators and other non-traditional risk management products.
ISE did not disclose what it is paying for the assets or the resulting
majority stake it has taken in a newly formed entity, Longitude LLC. Goldman Sachs Group, is increasing its minority stake in the enterprise.
Together, ISE and Goldman now own 100% of Longitude.
The purchase will “fulfill our vision of delivering expanded product
offerings for the industry that demonstrate our commitment to growth and
innovative technology,” according to a statement by David Krell,
president and CEO of ISE, which launched its US options exchange in May
2000.”We believe that Longitude’s platform complements ISE’s existing infrastructure and technologies and diversifies the suite of capabilities that we can deliver to the market.”