First British Runner to Finish in the Event and Twelfth
Participant Overall
Liquidnet, the global institutional marketplace (TM), announced today
that Hong Kong-based adventurer and Liquidnet employee, Rowley Aird,
completed a grueling 250 kilometer ultra marathon through the desert in
southern Namibia, as part of his ongoing efforts to raise funds for the
building of a village in Rwanda. The community, named Agahozo Shalom
Youth Village (ASYV), is sponsored by Liquidnet and will be home to
orphans primarily of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. Liquidnet budgets one
percent of its trailing revenues per year to fund its Global Social
Engagement initiatives, which are focused on conservation, social
awareness and employee volunteerism.
The running event, part of the Racing the Planet series, was equivalent
to six back-to-back to marathons, including a double marathon, all while
running self-supported in searing heat. Rowley was 1st among the 63
participants from Hong Kong, the 1st British finisher and 12th
overall in a field of 216. Around 22 percent of the field failed to
finish.
“It was the toughest event I have ever competed in, and the conditions
in the desert were unbelievably challenging,” Aird said, upon return to
Hong Kong from Africa last week. “It was all for a wonderful cause and I
know my efforts are helping families in Rwanda re-build their lives.”
This is Rowley’s third similar event, after completing ultra-marathons
in the Sahara Desert in 2008 and the Gobi Desert in 2007. He has so far
raised 120,000 USD towards the building of a village in Rwanda, with
Liquidnet matching all funds generated.
The ASYV, whose name is a hybrid of the Kinyarwandan word Agahozo "dry
their tears" and the Hebrew word shalom, "live in peace," has been in
development for two years. The site overlooks Lake Mugesera in Rwanda's
Eastern Province and includes 32 group homes, a complete high school,
science and computer laboratories, land for organic farming, a
reforestation program, 800-capacity dining hall, counseling and medical
facilities and recreational fields.
Aird aims to compete next year in his fourth ultra marathon, which is
being staged in Chile’s Atacama Crossing.
About Liquidnet
Liquidnet is the world’s institutional marketplace that facilitates
institutional equities trading for institutional investors worldwide. By
giving buy-side traders a first look at a global natural liquidity pool
averaging approximately 8.2 billion shares per day (for the quarter
ended March 31, 2009). Liquidnet consolidates and delivers the
institutional equities market directly to the desktops of 582 buy-side
trading firms (as of March 31, 2009). Institutional investors use the
Liquidnet marketplace to enhance the quality and speed of trade
execution, gain price improvement for their trades, and, ultimately,
lower overall trading costs. Launched in 2001, Liquidnet now trades in
29 equity markets across five continents. Participation in the Liquidnet
marketplace is open to all market participants who can meet criteria
designed to preserve the integrity of the platform. Liquidnet is
headquartered in New York with offices in London, Toronto, Tokyo, Hong
Kong, Sydney and Singapore. Additional company information is available
online at www.liquidnet.com.
© 2009 Liquidnet Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries. Liquidnet, Inc. is
a member of FINRA/SIPC. Liquidnet Europe Limited is regulated by the
U.K. Financial Services Authority and is a member of the London Stock
Exchange. Liquidnet Canada Inc. is a member of IIROC and a member of
CIPF. Liquidnet Asia Limited is regulated by the Hong Kong Securities
and Futures Commission as a licensed dealer and a provider of automated
trading services pursuant to the Securities and Futures Ordinance and is
regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore as a Recognised Market
Operator. Liquidnet Japan Inc. is regulated by the Financial Services
Agency of Japan and is a member of JSDA/JIPF. Liquidnet Australia Pty
Ltd. is a licensed corporation under the Corporations Act of Australia,
AFSL number 312525.