[ by C-I Staff ] FACT: The NYSE launched its new Retail Liquidity Program on Wednesday, 8/1. FACT: At Knight Capital Group, a technology-based trading glitch interfered with the opening of the NYSE trading session. FACT: The NYSE's Retail Liquidity Program is a direct challenge to Knight and other market makers. Coincidence?  Possibly. New NYSE Rule. This long-awaited, though controversial, new rule was recently approved by the SEC.  It is intended to give retail traders slightly better prices than others in the market.  The program is an effort to induce retail investors to trade away from mostly off-exchange electronic "wholesalers." That would include Knight and other market makers that, in the past, typically got a first look at the highly coveted orders from individual traders, known as retail traders.  With the new liquidity program in place, it's expected that the NYSE will be able to reclaim some market share that it has lost over the last decade. Several other exchanges are in the process of applying for similar programs.  All applications are submitted to the SEC for approval, via rule filings.