About the Interactive Brokers Group

Thomas Peterffy (now Chairman of the Interactive Brokers (IBKR) Group) buys a seat on the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) and becomes a member, trading as an individual market maker in equity options.

T.P. & Co. expands to four employees, three of whom are AMEX members.

Efforts are made to code and test a system that identifies potential delta-neutral trade pairs. Our greatest challenge: how to electronically read the prices of options as they are posted.

Timber Hill creates the first handheld computers used for trading. Their ability to track positions and continually re-price options on one stock quickly gives Timber Hill traders an advantage over their counterparts at the exchange, who continue to use fair value pricing sheets that are updated only once or twice a day.

Timber Hill begins trading at the Philadelphia Stock Exchange.

Timber Hill expands to 12 employees.

In February, Timber Hill's new computer system and network is brought online, ushering in a new era of computerized trading. The system allows Timber Hill to centrally price and manage risk on a portfolio of equity derivatives traded in multiple locations around the country.

We install stacks of computer screens on the exchange floors at strategic locations. They are connected to our computer systems in our offices. The screens include color-coded strips so traders can easily see the firm's bids and offers. The screens also take touch input so that completed trades can be entered.

Timber Hill becomes a member of the New York Futures Exchange.

Timber Hill begins trading at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade and the Chicago Board Options Exchange.

Timber Hill becomes self-clearing in equities, joining the National Securities Clearing Corp. and the Depository Trust Company.

The stock market crash creates the impetus for cross-margining between clearing houses with Timber Hill as a major proponent, as Peterffy is a member of the Board of the Options Clearing Corporation. (Cross-margining emerges several years later).

Timber Hill expands to 67 employees, most of them on exchange floors, trading with color-striped screens.

Timber Hill establishes a fully automated trading system where its computers trade directly with NASDAQ's Central Matching computer without any human intervention other than NASDAQ traders and brokers. The first automated trader on Wall Street. When NASDAQ orders Timber Hill to operate through the keyboard, Timber Hill builds a computer-driven mechanical system that punches keys on the keyboard.

The first electronic options exchange in history opens in Germany.

Timber Hill agrees to make a continuous market on options in return for permission to communicate with the exchange electronically. Timber Hill connects its automated market making system, but though the exchange begins sending trade confirmations to a screen, it does not agree to digital.

Timber Hill must build a photo lens and optical recognition system to understand trades.

Timber Hill Deutschland GmbH is incorporated in Germany. Shortly thereafter, the firm begins trading equity derivatives at the Deutsche Terminborse (DTB) (now Eurex). This is the first application of Timber Hill’s trading system on a fully-automated exchange.

Timber Hill becomes one of the leading market makers at the DTB, with more than 10% of the trading volume.

Timber Hill Europe AG is incorporated in Switzerland and takes over the Group's trading at SOFFEX.

In the United States, Timber Hill floor traders begin using commercially available handheld computers on exchange floors, communicating by radio with the firm's Central pricing system. The handheld computers allow traders to create electronic trade tickets.

The CME grants the firm’s floor traders permission to use handheld computers in the trading pit, connected by radio waves. Timber Hill’s clients can now INTERACT with the world through the pit, its traders and its screens.

Interactive Brokers Inc. (now known as IB LLC) is incorporated as a US broker-dealer. Timber Hill's vast intercontinental electronic network and trade execution services are now available to clients.

Timber Hill France S.A. is incorporated and begins making markets at the Paris Traded Equity Options Market and the Marché à Terme International de France futures exchange.

Timber Hill Hong Kong begins making markets at the Hong Kong Futures Exchange.

Timber Hill Europe expands its activities into the Italian Mercato Italiano Futures and Spanish Meff Renta Variable markets.

IB LLC creates a workstation through which professional clients gain access to exchanges around the world.

IB LLC executes its first trades for public clients.

The Hong Kong Futures Exchange lists stock index futures on an electronic market. Timber Hill Hong Kong is the only committed market maker.

Timber Hill Australia Pty Limited is incorporated in Australia.

Timber Hill Europe begins trading in Norway and becomes a member of the Austrian Derivatives Exchange.

With continuous electronic liquidity provided by Timber Hill, the S&P 500 E-Mini futures becomes the first US electronic market and the most successful electronic futures contract ever introduced.

The Timber Hill Group now makes bids and offers for 60,000 items.

Timber Hill trades nearly 5% (15,000 transactions) of the daily volume in listed equity derivatives worldwide. The firm expands to 284 employees.

IBKR provides "smart routing" linkage for multiple listed equity options.

IBKR begins to clear online trades for clients who trade stocks and equity derivatives through the IB system.

IBKR becomes the first firm to offer online, direct-access brokerage services in Hong Kong to the HKFE.

The corporate name of The Timber Hill Group LLC is changed to the Interactive Brokers Group LLC.

The group's combined electronic brokerage and market making volume now exceeds 200,000 trades per day.

Standard & Poor's issues an investment grade rating to Timber Hill LLC. For more information on Standard & Poor's visit: http://www.standardandpoors.com.

The Interactive Brokers Group companies transact approximately 12% of the exchange-listed equity and index options worldwide.

Interactive Brokers expands execution and clearing services to include Canadian stocks, equity/index options and futures, Italian index options and futures, German equity options, Japanese index options and futures, Dutch index options and futures, UK equity options and Belgian index options and futures.

Barron's names IBKR the #1 software-based broker overall and #1 for lowest trade cost.

Institutional Investor ranks IBG as the 16th largest US securities firm.

The Interactive Brokers Group companies execute over 16% of the world's options in markets where they actively trade.

IDEALPRO is launched, providing traders with tight forex quotes from multiple bank dealers in a single quote montage.