High-frequency traders aren't going anywhere, and market distortions from Federal Reserve liquidity programs are likely to remain as well while the central bank continues with its quantitative easing policy.
"If the money to boost the US stock market capitalization by almost $9 trillion from the March 2009 lows did not come from the traditional players, it had to come from somewhere. We believe that place is the Fed," TrimTabs analysts said in a research note. "By funneling trillions of dollars in cash to the primary (bond) dealers in exchange for debt, the Fed has given Wall Street lots of firepower to ramp up the prices of risk assets, including equities."