Exclusive: Citigroup says to shutter LavaFlow stock trading venue

Citigroup Inc said on Tuesday it is shutting down its alternative stock trading venue LavaFlow at a time when regulatory scrutiny around broker-run trading platforms has increased, forcing banks to rethink their costs.

"Following a recent review of the LavaFlow ECN, we have decided that our capital, resources and efforts would be better redeployed to other areas within Citi's Equities Division," Citi said in a statement.