For Traders, Wit May Offer After-Hours Spot

Now that huge numbers of individual investors have become accustomed to trading from their desktop computers, the next step for some could be to trade online around the clock.

An online stock market that lets little investors trade shares among themselves after the regular markets close--just like professional money managers--is the latest bet of Andrew Klein, whose Wit Capital Corp. brought initial public offerings to the Internet. Two former enforcement lawyers for the Securities and Exchange Commission plan to start a similar project this year too.

Wit Capital hopes to start an after-hours market in partnership with discount brokerages in the next few months, taking a cut of every trade. The plan depends on getting enough online brokers and their clients to join in, though, and it’s not clear yet that enough will participate.

“The challenge for these guys is get sufficient order flow,” said Bill Burnham, who follows online commerce companies for Credit Suisse First Boston Corp.

Klein said some discount brokers have signed up for the market, which he has been planning for more than two years, but he declined to name them. Many of the biggest discount online brokerages either declined to comment or said it’s too early to say whether they will participate. Bruce Zucker, president of Mydiscountbroker.com, which is owned by Southwest Securities Corp., said his firm plans to participate.

An after-hours market would help individual investors trade on news that breaks after the stock market closes.