Buy-Side Technology Awards 2014: Best Buy-Side EMS—Portware

In today’s markets, the ability to rapidly analyze and make decisions on a swath of information can provide a competitive advantage. Alfred Eskandar, CEO of Portware, says Portware Enterprise, the vendor’s EMS platform, provides predictive analytics and decision-support tools across a global footprint with multi-asset functionality. Eskandar describes Portware as providing the industry’s first “thinking EMS,” explaining that it utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) components to allow traders to make better decisions, faster, and more consistently.

“Portware embraces each client’s unique processes, pain points and workflows, and engineers solutions that turn their complex challenges into opportunities,” he says. “There are numerous similarities between buy-side institutions. However, where they differ is where their competitive advantage lies—and that should be embraced.”

Through Portware Enterprise, Portware combines AI, visualization tools and algorithms that provide real-time decision support. Through its visualization tools, traders can sort, filter and see their orders in a customizable way. Over the last 12 months, the vendor has added predictive analytics, profiling tools, visualization and decision support, and algorithm management and commission optimization capabilities. The EMS supports global equities, foreign exchange (FX), futures, options and fixed income.

“Portware acts as a central platform to communicate, analyze and execute investment ideas across multiple asset classes,” Eskandar says. “Clients enjoy seamless integration with other systems and unconflicted access to the widest range of liquidity providers, broker algorithmic suites and trading destinations worldwide. It’s the first and only algorithmic optimization solution that uses predictive analytics to automatically select and implement the optimal execution strategy.”

Saurabh Srivastava, global head of electronic trading at Invesco notes: “Portware allows us to consolidate our global trading activity across all asset classes into a single EMS, standardizing technology, workflows and processes. The system offers a rich set of decision-making support features that enable our trading desks globally to navigate a highly complex execution landscape. Most importantly, it empowers us to implement and deploy our proprietary ideas. All of the above facilitates greater efficiencies and ultimately better trading outcomes for our clients.”

Through Portware Enterprise, Portware combines AI, visualization tools and algorithms that provide real-time decision support. Through its visualization tools, traders can sort, filter and see their orders in a customizable way.