Chief Strategy Officer
International Securities Exchange
[PNR]

A disruptive force from the start, having opened the first all-electronic U.S. options exchange in 2000, International Securities Exchange has never stopped pushing for innovation — even after its 2007 acquisition by Frankfurt-based Eurex. “Give credit where it is due,” says chief strategy officer Thomas Ascher, referring to the considerable autonomy granted ISE by Eurex and parent Deutsche Börse. There has been synergy: The Optimise high-speed trading system is being phased in after three years of Eurex-ISE teamwork. But there is also the corporate initiatives division in New York, headed by Ascher and leading what he calls “a quest for diversification and innovation, which are often one and the same.” The quest involves continuously “looking for a better way” and admitting “we don’t have all the answers,” says the 49-year-old Ascher, a derivatives industry veteran who joined ISE six years ago. He spearheads the exchange’s strategic investments, including interests in Direct Edge (see William O’Brien, No. 19) and high-performance-system developer Hanweck Associates. In 2006, ISE bought the rights to Longitude, an analytical engine greatly enhanced by advances in computing power. ISE is pursuing opportunities for Longitude further afield — in pari-mutuel wagering, for example.