BATS Trading, the Missouri-based electronic communications network that is garnering market share from major US exchanges, has named a European chief executive and chief operating officer in a move that brings it a step closer to a launch in Europe.

Mark Hemsley, a former chief information officer at Euronext.liffe, the London-based derivatives exchange, will become the chief executive for the BATS Trading (Europe) operation while Paul O’Donnell, a 14-year Morgan Stanley veteran, is the new chief operating officer for the London-based entity.