Embodiments of the invention provide an anonymous RFQ system for financial
instruments that resolves the inherent conflict between a capital
provider's need for information and a market participant's need for
confidentiality by creating an environment where market participants and
capital providers can realize the benefits of sharing confidential
trading interest (CTI) information without sacrificing anonymity or
enabling information leakage. This secure environment preferably is
created within an electronic matching book that distills all CTI
information related to each Request for Quote (RFQ) into a risk class
that is sent to capital providers in lieu of order-identifying or
trader-identifying information. These risk classes give capital providers
enough information to offer customized, risk-adjusted quotes without
requiring the market participant to reveal confidential information about
herself or her order.