Virtu Financial and Partners Invest in New Options Intermediary to Compete for Retail Order Flow
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Jan 14 2026
0mins
Source: seekingalpha
- Investment in New Intermediary: Virtu Financial, Akuna Capital, Belvedere Trading, and Optiver have collectively invested in a new options intermediary, Optimal Market Technologies, aiming to acquire order flow from retail brokers and challenge Citadel Securities' market dominance.
- Increased Market Competition: The four firms will lead a larger group of liquidity providers competing for order flow routed from trading apps used by small-scale traders, thereby enhancing market competitiveness and boosting their profitability.
- Regulatory Approval Progress: Optimal has received approval from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, but it has yet to secure final approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to create an alternative trading system, which will impact its market operations' timing and efficiency.
- Growth in Order Flow Payments: According to Bloomberg Intelligence, order flow payments across U.S. equities and options surged 51% year-over-year to $1.24 billion in Q3 2025, indicating that retail brokers continue to thrive in a low-commission environment.
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Analyst Views on HOOD
Wall Street analysts forecast HOOD stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for HOOD is 156.24 USD with a low forecast of 130.00 USD and a high forecast of 181.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
20 Analyst Rating
16 Buy
4 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 101.240
Low
130.00
Averages
156.24
High
181.00
Current: 101.240
Low
130.00
Averages
156.24
High
181.00
About HOOD
Robinhood Markets, Inc. is creating a financial services platform for everyone, regardless of their wealth, income, or background. It uses technology to provide access to the financial system. Its offerings include Brokerage, Robinhood Crypto, Custody, Robinhood Wallet, Robinhood Gold, and Robinhood Gold Card. Its Brokerage services include investing, options trading, fractional trading, recurring investment, access to investing on margin, fully paid securities lending, cash sweep, instant withdrawals, Robinhood retirement, 24-hour market, joint investing accounts, and event contracts. It also offers a variety of ways for its customers to grow their financial knowledge, including Robinhood Learn, In-App Education, Newsfeeds, Sherwood Snacks, and Crypto Learn and Earn. Its self-clearing system, order routing system, data platform, and other back-end infrastructure deliver the capabilities that allow its customers to focus on investing, saving and spending.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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