Industry Issues & Initiatives
Changing the Wheels on a Moving Car
Trying to figure out how to keep an organization moving forward, while looking forward, is one of the hardest challenges in fintech today.
Internal Dilemmas: Investing in Bitcoin & Clear Consciences
According to one estimate, the global bitcoin network will require more electricity than what is required to power the entire US by July 2019.
ION's Openlink Acquisition Shows Deeper Strategic Moves at Work
The Openlink deal is the latest in a string of acquisitions by ION as it consolidates power in treasury, derivatives and commodities, with the help of Carlyle Group.
CAT Got Your Tongue?: An Inside Look at the Consolidated Audit Trail's Sluggish Rollout
When the Consolidated Audit Trail failed to go live in November last year, questions came as to why—but answers were not easy to come by.
Scott Blandford's Random Collisions
TIAA's chief digital officer sits down with Waters to discuss how the retirement giant is using big data to improve the customer experience and what the institutional side of finance can learn from retail.
Waters Wavelength Podcast Episode 107: An Examination of the Thomson Reuters-Blackstone Deal
Anthony, James and Max Bowie dig into the Thomson Reuters-Blackstone announcement and try and figure out the winners and losers, industry-wide.
IHS Markit Teams With Cambridge Blockchain for Improved KYC Functionality
The pairing was spurred on, in part, by the looming General Data Protection Rule, which is due to go into effect in Europe later this year.
Cryptocurrencies Come of Age, But Is Crypto Data Ready?
Once used as payment for shady deals, digital currencies have long been the domain of speculators and retail investors. But the wild price increases of the past year have led institutional investors to sniff excitedly at the loins of the cryptocurrency…
Waters Wavelength Podcast Episode 106: Blockchain on the Buy Side; the Importance of Coding
Anthony and James examine a new report about how the buy side is lagging behind when it comes to blockchain development, and how K-12 schools are lagging when it comes to teaching coding.
Industry Fears Neutered CAT in 2018
The SEC’s Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT) of US equities trade data hit a fresh snag in late 2017, missing a major deadline for reporting, blaming insufficient cyber defenses. As it marches into another crucial year, Tim Bourgaize Murray reports on the…
Quantum Concern: Some Takeaways After Covering Quantum Computing’s Evolution
Asia editor Wei-Shen Wong has been covering the quantum space closely for over a year, and she has some thoughts on its progression.
January 2018: Getting Your Bitcoin’s Worth
Financial firms spent a lot of last year focused on Mifid II compliance, but also clearly spent significant time following the ups and downs of cryptocurrencies - and assessing whether to invest in this new asset class.
Post-Mifid II, Shelved Projects May See New Life
Tech chiefs and vendors see chance to revisit missed opportunities—in time.
Tech Sits at the Heart of ‘Evolve or Die’ Proposition for the Buy Side
One of the key takeaways from last year's Chicago-hosted SS&C Deliver conference is the importance for buy-side firms to develop a proactive technology strategy in order to adapt to a changing industry.
DTCC Proposes Measures to Further Reduce US Settlement Times
The two proposals could bring settlement down to a day-and-a-half from time of trade, but still need more feedback from the industry.
Buy Side Bands Together on Blockchain Vision in Landmark Paper
Fund managers, vendors and trade associations release joint paper on making distributed-ledger technology work for the buy side.
Waters Wavelength Podcast Episode 105: Blackstone's Bill Murphy, Part 3
Bill Murphy, CTO of Blackstone, once again joins the podcast to discuss the private equity firm's new offices, designed to house its innovations team.
Derivatives Market Prepares for Emerging Tech Implementation
2018 is the year when large numbers of participants in the derivatives market expect to see emerging technologies being integrated into their existing technology ecosystems
Breaker of Chains: The Appeals and Perils of Quantum Computing
“We need to seriously rethink encryption and seriously rethink things that rely on encryption, like blockchain. Anything that is heavily dependent on complexity needs to be reconsidered in a quantum world.”
Aquis Tech Links SIs, Counterparties via Connectivity Hub
Hub allows counterparties to continually adjust which stocks they want to interact with.
Northfield Partners with Alexandria for Sentiment-Based Risk Models
The offering aims to help users quantify risk based on the latest news.
Mifid Data Runs Aground with Issues at European Regulators
Glitches and halts mark first few weeks of transparency requirements at systems operated by regulators.
Swift Recruits CSDs to Explore Post-Trade DLT Implementation
The group has defined product requirements for an e-voting solution based on DLT that includes common standards and principles.
The Bitcoin Futures Feeding Frenzy
Every exchange with a passing interest in commodities seems to be developing bitcoin futures, but the underlying asset is still a risky proposition for all but the most sophisticated—or ignorant—investors, James argues.