Tighter spreads were made possible by electronic exchanges, penny pricing, and direct access brokerages. You didn't need HFT for that. You could've gotten the

Tighter spreads were made possible by electronic exchanges, penny pricing, and direct access brokerages. You didn't need HFT for that. You could've gotten the same thing with LFT. If all you want is a penny spread, then nanoseconds don't matter.