In Episode 6, Donnie Roberts talk with Lynette about his experiences creating The Small Exchange, which is expected to launch in January 2020. He discusses the practical challenges of starting an exchange, his career path and how it led to this venture, the differences between starting thinkorswim in 1999 and The Small Exchange 20 years later, and some features of their “Small, Standard, and Simple” products.

Donnie Roberts is the President and Chief Executive Officer of The Small Exchange, Inc.  Prior to taking on this role, he was the President and Chief Operating Officer of TD Ameritrade Futures and Forex LLC, an NFA registered FCM/FDM, where his responsibilities included oversight of execution, clearing, compliance and relationship management until October of 2016.  Before his position at TD Ameritrade, Mr. Roberts was a founding employee and principal of thinkorswim, Inc., a FINRA and NFA registered firm, where he held the positions of Managing Director of Operations, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Operating Officer.  thinkorswim was acquired by TD Ameritrade in 2009.

He started his career as a clerk and Market Maker for Timberhill LLC at the Chicago Board Options Exchange, later selling electronic trading platforms for Interactive Brokers LLC, providing electronic access to exchanges worldwide.  Mr. Roberts attended St. Bonaventure University in New York, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication and an MBA in Finance. He also studied economics and sociology at Oxford University.  Mr.  Roberts still holds Series 4, 7, 24, 55 and 63 licenses.

Mentioned in this episode:

The Small Exchange: https://www.thesmallexchange.com/#/

CFTC application procedures for becoming a Designated Contract Market: https://www.cftc.gov/IndustryOversight/TradingOrganizations/DCMs/dcmhowto.html

Benzinga Global Fintech Awards: https://fintechawards.com/

The Options Clearing Corporation: https://www.theocc.com/

Tom Sosnoff: https://www.tastytrade.com/tt/bio/tom-sosnoff

thinkorswim at TD Ameritrade: https://www.tdameritrade.com/tools-and-platforms/thinkorswim/features.page

In Episode 5, Lynette sits down with Dr. Richard Sandor for a discussion about how he created the AMERIBOR interest rate benchmark, planning for a 10-year development process, the relationship between innovators and regulators, and the importance of working with thought leaders and first movers. The conversation concludes with a side trip into Dr. Sandor’s passion for photography and his journey as a collector.

Dr. Richard Sandor is Chairman and CEO of the American Financial Exchange (AFX). He is also the CEO of Environmental Financial Products, which specializes in inventing, designing and developing new financial markets. Dr. Sandor is currently the Aaron Director Lecturer in Law and Economics at the University of Chicago Law School and an Honorary Professor at the University of Hong Kong. He is the author of several books, including “Good Derivatives: A Story of Financial and Environmental Innovation,” and has received numerous honors for his work in environmental finance and carbon trading. He served on the boards of several exchanges, as well as philanthropic and not-for-profit organizations such as the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Clean Energy Trust. Dr. Sandor holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the City University of New York, Brooklyn College and a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Minnesota.

Mentioned in this episode:

AMERIBOR: https://ameribor.net/

Dr. Sandor’s pick for the best pulled pork in America: https://www.joeskc.com/

FDIC Minority Depository Institutions Program: https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/resources/minority/

Articles by Ronald Coase:

“The Nature of the Firm” https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1468-0335.1937.tb00002.x

“The Problem of Social Cost" https://www.law.uchicago.edu/files/file/coase-problem.pdf

Ellen Sandor & (art)n: https://www.artn.com/

The Richard and Ellen Sandor Family Collection: https://www.sandor-collection.com/

In Episode 4, Russ Rausch joins Lynette for a conversation about how training your brain can improve your life experience as well as performance. He shares the story of his transition from a career in the futures industry to founding Vision Pursue, which helps organizations, sports teams, and individuals shape their mindsets and find internal paths to fulfillment.

Russ Rausch is a Partner at Vision Pursue and an executive with over 16 years of C-Level experience with companies in the hedge fund and technology sectors. Before VP, he was the Chief Operating Officer of the hedge fund Emil van Essen in Chicago. He was also part of the executive team that took the trading software firm, Trading Technologies, Inc. (TT), from a 20-person startup to a successful 650-person global company as CFO, CIO, Head of Global Support and EVP of Global Buyside Sales.

Mentioned in this episode:

Vision Pursue: https://www.visionpursue.com/

The Master Key by Charles Haanel: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/302264/the-master-key-system-by-charles-f-haanel/

“My Stroke of Insight” TED talk by Jill Bolte Taylor: https://www.ted.com/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight?language=en

Grit by Angela Duckworth: https://angeladuckworth.com/grit-book/