Trophy Cabinet: Winners of the 2017 Waters Rankings and AFTAs
Looking back at the winners of Waters Rankings and the AFTAs for the past year.
In 2017, we gave out 63 awards during the Waters Rankings and the American Financial Technology Awards (AFTAs). Both awards introduced one new category around artificial intelligence (AI). Waters Rankings added Best AI Technology Provider, won by AlphaSense, while the AFTAs awarded Best AI Initiative to FIS.
Below are the winners of both Waters Rankings and the AFTAs.
Waters Rankings
Announced July 20
- Best Agency Broker — Bloomberg Tradebook
- Best Crossing Network — Instinet
- Best Sell-Side Clearing Provider — DTCC
- Best Reconciliation Management Provider — Electra Information Systems
- Best Algorithmic Trading Provider — Wolverine Execution Services
- Best Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technology Provider — AlphaSense
- Best Sell-Side Order Management System (OMS) Provider — Bloomberg
- Best Buy-Side Order Management System (OMS) Provider — Eze Software Group
- Best Portfolio Management System Provider — RiskVal Financial Solutions
- Best Buy-Side Execution Management System (EMS) Provider — Eze Software Group
- Best Performance Measurement System Provider — FactSet
- Best Transaction-Cost Analysis (TCA) System Provider — FIS
- Best Enterprise Data Management (EDM) Provider — IHS Markit
SS&C Advent wins for Best Accounting System Provider - Best Reference Data Provider — Thomson Reuters
- Best Corporate Actions Provider — SIX Financial Information
- Best Low-Latency Data Feed — Thomson Reuters
- Best Data Analytics Provider — Broadridge Financial Solutions
- Best Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Compliance Solution — NICE Actimize
- Best Market Risk Solution Provider — RiskVal Financial Solutions
- Best Credit Risk Solution Provider — Moody’s Analytics
- Best Market Surveillance System Provider — Nasdaq SMARTS
- Best Reporting System Provider — Vermilion Software
- Best Accounting System Provider — SS&C Advent
- Best Cybersecurity Provider — Eze Castle Integration
- Best Outsourcing Service Provider — Electra Information Systems
- Best Trading Floor Communication System Provider — IPC Systems
- Best Network Provider — BT Best Mobile Solution Provider — TS
- Best Cloud-Based Services Provider — Archer
- Best Cloud Infrastructure Provider — Amazon Web Services
American Financial Technology Awards
Held December 5
- Best AI technology initiative—FIS
- Best back-office initiative—SmartStream Technologies
- Best collaboration initiative—SS&C Advent
- Best communications infrastructure provider—IPC Systems
- Best front-office initiative—State Street Global Exchange
- Best middle-office initiative—RIMES Technologies
- Best new technology introduced over the last 12 months – front office—IHS Markit
- Best new technology introduced over the last 12 months – infrastructure—Metamako
- Best new technology introduced over the last 12 months – middle and back office—AdvantageData
- Best new technology introduced over the last 12 months – risk compliance and reporting—AQMetrics
- Best partnership or alliance—Thomson Reuters & Symphony Communications
- Best third party technology vendor IT team—Axioma
- Best trading infrastructure provider—Cobalt
- Best use of the Agile methodology—Confluence
- Most innovative technology vendor – front office—Overbond
- Most innovative technology vendor – infrastructure—UnaVista
- Most innovative technology vendor – middle office—S3 Partners
- Most innovative technology vendor – risk, compliance and reporting—Imagine Software
- Best analytics initiative—Credit Suisse
- Best cloud initiative—Northern Trust
- Best compliance initiative—Bank of America Merrill Lynch
- Best cross-asset trading initiative—State Street Corporation
- Best data management initiative—Deutsche Bank
- Best infrastructure initiative—JPMorgan Asset Wealth Management
- Best IT integration initiative —Cowen
- Best IT team—Charles Schwab Investment Management
- Best mobile strategy initiative—Janus Henderson
- Best reporting initiative—State Street Corporation
- Best risk management initiative—TD Securities
- Most cutting-edge IT initiative —JPMorgan Asset Wealth Management Individual Categories
- Best third-party technology vendor CIO or CEO—Neil Barua (IPC Systems)
- Best technology executive, buy side—Mike Urciuoli (JPMorgan Asset Wealth Management)
- Best technology executive, sell side—Jodi Richard (US Bank)
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More on Awards & Rankings
Most innovative market data project/initiative—firmfact
Firmfact automates market‑data contracts, invoices and entitlements for banks and asset managers. Its AI reads documents, matches invoices line‑by‑line and verifies licences with minimal keying.
Best market data newcomer (vendor or product)—Octaura
Octaura’s Insights Platform is an integrated market intelligence and analytics offering purpose-built for the leveraged loan market.
Best market data provider (broker)—Fenics Market Data & Analytics
FMD’s Broker Data service draws on BGC Group’s global brokerage operations to provide pricing, trade and order-flow information across FX, rates, fixed income, commodities and derivatives.
Best evaluated pricing service provider/vendor—Infront
Infront Quant supplies independent, cross‑asset valuations with a “white‑box approach”, offering level 1 and 2 transparency.
IMD & IRD Awards 2026 winner’s interview—Smartstream
Smartstream wins Best reference data managed service at the IMD & IRD Awards 2026
Best reference data integration vendor—Gresham
Gresham’s AI-native EDM Suite combines data from disparate sources and systems and provides user-firms with a single point of integration across the data life cycle.
Best ESG data initiative—Bloomberg
Bloomberg’s Impact and Allocation dataset provides investors with a consistent means of assessing how proceeds are being deployed and what outcomes issuers report.
Best AI/machine learning data initiative—FactSet
FactSet unveiled its MCP server in December 2025, allowing secure, authorized access to the firm’s data from third‑party AI tools.
