Patent ID: 8195557

Claim:
A method for options order routing, comprising: (a) listing by a computing system, on a market center, having at least one processor and at least one memory a plurality of options series, wherein the computing system has an order book for each option series and a market maker quote book for each option series, has intermarket linkages and direct connections to a plurality of away market centers, receives a top-of-book best bid and offer disseminated quotation from the plurality of away market centers for each option series, and has at least one configurable routing table including a set of routing rules that specify intermarket linkage and direct connection parameters for each away market center; (b) receiving by the computing system an incoming order; (c) determining by the computing system whether the order can execute at the NBBO or better; (d) responsive to determining that the order can execute at the NBBO or better; (d)(i) retrieving by the computing system the best bid and offer disseminated quotation from each away market center; (d)(ii) determining by the computing system whether a disseminated quotation of any away market center is superior to the orders and market maker quotes resident on the market center; (d)(iii) responsive to determining that the disseminated quotation of any away market center is superior; (d)(iii)(a) retrieving by the computing system the set of routing rules from the routing table for the away market center having the superior disseminated quotation; (d)(iii)(b) determining by the computing system whether the incoming order can be routed to the away market center having the superior disseminated quotation; (d)(iii)(c) responsive to determining that the incoming order can be routed to the away market center having the superior disseminated quotation: (d)(iii)(c)(i) determining by the computing system an appropriate routing protocol and generating an outbound order based on the routing rules for the specified away market center; and (d)(iii)(c)(ii) routing by the computing system the generated outbound order to the away market center having the superior disseminated quotation over the selected routing protocol.