Speed-of-light limitations say that yes, the best HFT will happen close to the trading floor.
EDIT: Okay, close to NYSE's datacenter, which is still in New York, I believe.
EDIT: Okay, close to NYSE's datacenter, which is still in New York, I believe.
Why?
HFT needs to be close to where transactions happen, but that's not the trading floor.
The trading floor is just a place where a bunch of people with a bunch of screens connected to the "place where transactions happen" gather each trading period.
The trading floor can't be where transactions happen because it's got people in it, not machines.