NASDAQ Beats Competition and Investors Win Starting in 2001, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) mandated that uniform trade statistics be reported by all Market Centers. The latest numbers are in, and analysis of the data obtained from third-party data provider, Market Systems Inc., clearly demonstrates that NASDAQ delivers far superior execution quality compared to other markets. How is this a win for investors? Faster Execution Speed NASDAQ’s unmatched speed means there is less trading uncertainty—less likelihood of the market moving away from an investor’s price. Superior Quoted Spreads Tighter spreads between bid and ask prices on NASDAQ mean better prices, benefiting investors and traders alike who are accessing liquidity. Lower Transaction Costs Investors enjoy lower effective spreads on NASDAQ. Lower effective spreads lead to lower trading costs, which means investors can put more toward their investments rather than covering a wide spread. The information in this document is based on October 2002 SEC Rule 11Ac1-5 statistics for comparable NASDAQ- and NYSE-listed securities in the S&P 500 Index, companies 101-500 in the S&P 500 Index, and the S&P 400 MidCap Index. The statistical analysis was produced by the Market Systems Inc. (MSI) Web site. MSI is a third-party vendor that compiles 11Ac1-5 execution quality statistics; NASDAQ subscribes to their service. S&P 500 Stocks Trade Better on NASDAQ* *NASDAQ and NYSE Average Quoted Spread for S&P 500 Companies. All Marketable Orders, All Order Sizes Companies 101-500 of the S&P 500 Trade Better on NASDAQ** **NASDAQ and NYSE Average Quoted Spread for S&P 101-500 Companies. All Marketable Orders, All Order Sizes S&P 400 MidCap Stocks Trade Better on NASDAQ*** ***NASDAQ and NYSE Average Quoted Spread for S&P 400 Companies. All Marketable Orders, All Order Sizes