Cultures of high-frequency trading: mapping the landscape of algorithmic developments in contemporary financial markets |
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Authors: | Ann-Christina Lange Marc Lenglet Robert Seyfert |
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Institution: | 1. Ann-Christina Lange, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Management, Politics and Philosophy, Porcel?nshaven 18B, 2000 Frederiksberg, Denmarkala.mpp@cbs.dk;3. Marc Lenglet, European Business School Paris, Management, Strategy, Systems Department, 10, rue Sextius Michel, 75015 Paris, France. E-mail: marclenglet@ebs-paris.com;4. Robert Seyfert, Europa Universit?t Viadrina, Frankfurt (Oder), Gro?e Scharrnstr. 59, 15230 Frankfurt (Oder), Germany. E-mail: seyfert@europa-uni.de;5. Universit?t Konstanz, Center of Excellence, Cultural Foundations of Integratio, 78457 Konstanz, Germany. E-mail: Robert.Seyfert@uni-konstanz.de |
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Abstract: | AbstractAs part of ongoing work to lay a foundation for social studies of high-frequency trading (HFT), this paper introduces the culture(s) of HFT as a sociological problem relating to knowledge and practice. HFT is often discussed as a purely technological development, where all that matters is the speed of allocating, processing and transmitting data. Indeed, the speed at which trades are executed and data transmitted is accelerating, and it is fair to say that algorithms are now the primary interacting agents operating in the financial markets. However, we contend that HFT is first and foremost a cultural phenomenon. More specifically, both individuals and collective agents – such as algorithms – might be considered cultural entities, charged with very different ways of processing information, making sense of it and turning it into knowledge and practice. This raises issues relating to situated knowledge, distributed cognition and action, the assignment of responsibility when regulating high-speed algorithms, their history, organizational structure and, perhaps more fundamentally, their representation. |
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Keywords: | algorithms cultures economic sociology high-frequency trading social studies of finance |
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