Sell-Side Technology Awards 2017: Best Sell-Side Trading Communication System—Cloud9 Technologies

Long a staple of the trading desk, the turret is going through something of a renaissance. Much as how cloud-based technology has revolutionized information systems, so too has it changed the way traders communicate with one another. Cloud9 offers a software-as-a-servive (SaaS)-based alternative to traditional telephony solutions. Its C9 Trader platform taps into the power of WebRTC technology and Amazon Web Services’ cloud infrastructure. This helps provide traders with increased mobility, scalability, reliability and affordability. Some users have seen cost savings of up to 50 percent on their trader-voice needs, according to the New York-based vendor. 

Eclipse International, a brokerage specializing in over-the-counter (OTC) options and futures in the commodities space, recently switched from using a turret provided by Speakerbus to Cloud9. Jesse DiPlacido, a partner at Eclipse International, told Waters that the results were impressive. “We were able to take the Speakerbus turrets off our desks; we don’t use them anymore,” he said. “Our clients on the other side don’t know the difference. They don’t know if we’re pressing a button on the turret or picking up the handset or clicking a button on the Cloud9 app to talk to them—the sound quality didn’t change.”

DiPlacido explained that by eliminating 15 hardwired turrets, the broker was able to save between $2,500 and $5,000 per month.

In July, Cloud9 released its Gateway Service, which connects Cloud9 users to their trading counterparties, even those firms that are not Cloud9 customers. It can also be deployed on-site or as a hosted, cloud-based service.

Pointing toward future growth, Cloud9 received $30 million in funding from a group of investors, including JPMorgan Chase, Point 72 Ventures, Hudson River Asset Management and Barclays. The vendor’s next innovation is Wavelength—a service designed to connect the trading floor and middle and back offices with intercom capabilities. It also supports group and TV audio broadcasts to keep users informed on industry news.

And just as cloud has revolutionized the trading space, the next evolution is almost certainly artificial intelligence (AI). Cloud9 is currently evaluating a number of AI tools, looking to use deep-learning techniques to provide more accurate voice-to-text translation for institutional trading purposes. 

After years of slow, incremental change, the communication space is now changing rapidly. Cloud9 aims to be at the front of that new order.