Fidelity Investments said today it is exploring the creation of a new trading venue with other asset managers, as U.S. regulators investigate the controversial practice of high-frequency trading.

If created, Fidelity's trading venue would aim to boost fund performance and improve other areas like transparency and liquidity, said Fidelity spokesman Steve Austin in a telephone interview. Fidelity is the No. 2 U.S. mutual fund company behind Vanguard Group.

The fairness and efficiency of exchanges have come under scrutiny recently over concerns they may not offer equal terms to all investors.

Many banks and hedge funds use sophisticated computer programs to send large batches of orders into equity and futures markets in fractions of a second, a controversial practice known as high-frequency trading (HFT).

Proponents of HFT say the firms make it easier for other buyers and sellers to meet each other in the market, but critics argue it can cause sudden market crashes and easily mask market manipulation or other illegal activity.

In his new book, "Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt," author Michael Lewis says the U.S. stock market is rigged in favor of high-speed electronic trading firms, which use their advantages to extract billions from investors.

HFT makes up more than half of all U.S. trading volume.

Last year, IEX Group launched an exchange for buy-side companies such as mutual funds as an alternative to traditional trading venues.

Other details about what Fidelity might do were not immediately available, Austin said, and he declined to name other asset managers involved in the project.

Fidelity's Austin said the recent concerns did not prompt the exploration of the new trading venue, saying the company and others have been exploring the possibility for years.