SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF
THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report: April 8, 1997
THE ASHTON TECHNOLOGY GROUP, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware 333-1182 22-6650372
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(State of other jurisdiction of (Commission (IRS Employer
incorporation) File Number) Identification Number)
1900 Market Street, Suite 701, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (215) 751-1900
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Item 5. Other Events
On April 8, 1997, The Ashton Technology Group, Inc. (the "Company")
announced that its Universal Trading Technologies Corporation (UTTC) subsidiary
had completed the development of its initial online trading product for the
financial securities industry. The UTTC product is an electronic securities
pricing system that standardizes a trading technique, known as the Volume
Weighted Average Price (VWAP(TM)) execution, which is increasingly in demand by
institutional investors. A copy of the Company's press release issued on April
8, 1997 is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1
Item 7. Financial Statements and Exhibits
(c) Exhibits.
99.1 Press Release of the Company dated April 8, 1997.
<PAGE>
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf
by the undersigned herewith duly authorized.
Date: April 15, 1997 The Ashton Technology Group, Inc.
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(Registrant)
By: /s/ Fredric W. Rittereiser
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Fredric W. Rittereiser
Chief Executive Officer
EXHIBIT 99.1
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ashton Completes Development of its Initial Online Trading Product for the
Financial Securities Industry
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania, April 8, 1997. -- The Ashton Technology Group, Inc.
(NASDAQ: ASTN) announced today that its Universal Trading Technologies
Corporation (UTTC) subsidiary has completed the development of its initial
online trading product for the financial securities industry. The UTTC product
is an electronic securities pricing system that standardizes a trading
technique, known as the Volume Weighted Average Price (VWAPTM) execution, which
is increasingly in demand by institutional investors.
The UTTC (VWAPTM) product provides a superior method for investors to trade at a
price that guarantees both buyer and seller mutual price satisfaction by
removing the liability of market impact. UTTC also enables institutional
investors and financial intermediaries to trade from anywhere on earth in
complete anonymity through a proprietary electronic data security system
developed by Ashton.
UTTC's first client will be the Philadelphia Stock Exchange (PHLX) which will
employ the UTTC system on its equity floor for use by PHLX member firms and
their customers. The PHLX has submitted a rule change proposal to the Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) which, if approved, would allow UTTC to implement
a daily Pre-Opening Matching Session for the execution of large size stock
orders based on the Volume Weighted Average Price (VWAPTM). This pre-opening
session would enable investors to execute large sized orders in exchange-listed
securities at a fair price prior to the opening.
Ashton has spent more than five million dollars ($5 million) developing the UTTC
system. It uses an open, modular, fault-tolerant architecture plus advanced user
interfaces and client-server technology to handle all transactions
electronically. The system supports all operational aspects of the trading
session from order entry to clearing and settlement of executed trades. The UTTC
system is uniquely designed for the highest levels of data security required for
online financial products and for expandability to meet the exponential growth
in volume as VWAPTM is embraced by the financial community.
The Ashton Technology Group, Inc. specializes in the development and marketing
of propriety online transactional systems and state of the art electronic data
security including firewall technology, electronic authentication and data
encryption. Ashton and its subsidiaries are developing Internet based
transaction products to conduct and secure electronic transactions through the
World Wide Web.
CONTACT: Investor Relations Department of The Ashton Technology Group, Inc. at
The Philadelphia Stock Exchange Building, 1900 Market Street, Suite 701,
Philadelphia, PA 19103, Telephone (215) 751-1900, Fax (215) 636-3560.
