Instinet Incorporated, a global equities broker owned by Nomura Holdings, announced Monday that it has appointed Ralston Roberts as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), replacing Jonathan Kellner who recently left the firm to join cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.
It was first announced that Roberts was leaving Goldman Sachs for a senior position at Instinet in August of this year by news outlet Financial News. The report at the time said he would be taking the position of chief operating officer, sighting people familiar with the matter.
At Goldman Sachs, Roberts was a Managing Director and Co-Head of Execution Services for EMEA. Before working at the multinational investment bank, in June 2013, he was named as the chief operating officer for real-time market data and network services at SunGard, a software provider.
Commenting on the appointment, Steven Ashley, Head of Wholesale and Global Markets, and Chairman of Instinet Incorporated said: “Instinet’s technology-focused, agency execution model continues to play an integral part of the strategic ambitions we have for our Global Markets franchise. I am delighted to welcome Ralston who brings to the firm his extensive experience in the electronic trading and securities execution services businesses.”
“As Instinet celebrates its 50th anniversary next year, a testament to the firm’s ability to nimbly adapt to an ever-changing market and regulatory landscape, under Ralston’s leadership, our aim is to continue to advance and evolve the Instinet platform with a key focus on delivering for our clients.”
During his career, Roberts was also the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Wells Fargo Securities, a position he held for four years from 2002 until 2006. According to his LinkedIn profile, he began his career in 1999 as an Associate at Robertson Stephens.
“I am extremely excited to join Instinet, the “original fintech,” that introduced electronic trading to the financial markets, at a very interesting point in the firm’s history. I also look forward to working alongside this great team of seasoned trading, technology, and service experts, further expanding the firm’s valuable client offering and global footprint,” added Roberts.
(Photo: geograph.org.uk)
