High Frequency Trading: Information Tool for Efficient Markets or Destabilizing Force?

In recent years, concerns have been raised about the potential market risks associated with high frequency trading and algorithmic trading in general. Proponents of high frequency trading suggest the practice is a contemporary tool that facilitates informational market efficiency and is capable of being regulated by the market and market participants. Opponents have argued that these practices create risk and require aggressive regulation. This discussion takes place against a backdrop of heightened regulatory scrutiny given the recent push by the Securities and Exchange Commission to monitor high-frequency trading and related practices, such as the creation of dark pools, more closely.