ISE operates a sophisticated options trading system that executes trades in a fraction of a second, as well as provides immediate order cancellations and accurate audit trails. Four major components work in unison to power ISE’s technology environment:

• OTS -- The core of the options trading system, the OTS houses the trade matching engine, processes quotes, and broadcasts trade information to market participants.
• Order Routing System -- Order-flow providers route their orders to ISE’s Order Routing System, a front-end system that submits orders to and returns confirmations from the OTS in the preferred message format of the order-flow providers.
• Surveillance System -- Developed by ISE, the Surveillance System monitors marketplace activity. Automated alerts notify ISE’s surveillance staff of unusual trading activity and potential violations of ISE trading rules.
• Telecommunications Network -- The Telecommunications Network consists of:
• A Wide Area Network which connects ISE’s members to ISE’s data center OTS, receives market data from the underlying markets, disseminates ISE trades and quotes to the Options Price Reporting Authority (OPRA) and market participants, delivers trade details to the Options Clearing Corporation (OCC) and members for clearing, and provides high-bandwidth connectivity between ISE’s geographically diverse data centers; and
• Local Area Networks in each of ISE’s data centers that connect all the servers and other components which make up ISE’s technology environment.