Alternative data
Bloomberg’s new data retention policy vexes buy-side firms
Impacted users will have to pay extra costs to retain communications data for longer than two years.
Small alt data providers feel pressure to specialize
GTCOM-US, once a bespoke alt data shop for the buy side, has narrowed its offering to focus on Chinese datasets as the largest alt data players get even bigger.
People Moves: Nomura; Goldman Sachs/Talos; Rathbone Brothers; and More
A look at some of the key people moves from this week, including Sameer Jain (pictured), who has been appointed to oversee Nomura’s IT and operations for its global wholesale business.
What the inevitable ‘publicizing’ of private markets means for investors and exchanges
As markets for trading stock in privately-held companies become more prevalent and exchange-like, and potentially attract more investors, Max questions what impact this will have on fully-fledged exchanges and their offerings.
Waters Wrap: The nature of data and information (And Ion-List thoughts)
Anthony takes a look at the alternative data industry post-GameStop, and wonders about Ion Group’s strategy going forward after recent acquisitions.
IHS Markit soft launches more Risk Bureau capabilities ahead of Libor transition
The newly-acquired data giant targets the sell side with a suite of new risk-based applications meant to help banks with the transition from Libor, which is expected for the end of this year.
As asset managers look to Asia for alpha, analytics & visualization tools take center stage
PineBridge Investments uses economic and time-series data analytics provider Macrobond Financial to better its economics research, which supports its portfolio managers and the firm’s overall investment thesis.
GameStop post-mortem: Alt data world confronts eroding barrier between online and real life
After Redditors staged an epic short squeeze against a handful of hedge funds, some in the industry are left wondering whether today’s models and data techniques are prepared for world where online often equals real life.
Funds breathe out as EU regulators ease ESG data rules
Majority of mandatory indicators become optional in final draft of sustainability regulation
Waters Wrap: The changing face of news (And the changing face of office design)
Anthony looks at how news organizations and alternative data providers need to change their business models as ‘context’ takes on greater importance. Additionally, he gives his thoughts on open floor plans in a post-Covid world.
UK watchdogs run into security fears
Data security and innovation are always going to be in tension. A new plan to improve regulatory reporting might find itself facing worries over security, Jo says.
Data is boring, right? A look at some innovative market data projects underway
While market data departments are rarely highlighted when it comes to innovation, Max says that doesn’t mean there aren’t disruptive tech projects underway.
This Week: Refinitiv, State Street, FlexTrade, FactSet/Microsoft, Cboe, and more
A summary of some of the past week’s financial technology news.
Financial markets and herd mentalities
Support for the little guys (and girls!) of retail investing has been encouraging to witness, but when it comes to GameStop, Wei-Shen wonders what the bigger picture shows.
Advanced analytics ripe for no-code, low-code tools to enter the field
Jo predicts we will see a rise in no-code or low-code tools in the analytics space, but some barriers to scale remain.
PanAgora’s CIO & head of sustainable investing explain firm’s ESG framework, best practices
Waters Wavelength Podcast Interview Series: PanAgora’s George Mussalli and Mike Chen hit on topics including building predictive models using point-in-time data, and balancing ESG portfolios.
Waters Wrap: Dash Financial gets nabbed by Ion (And monetizing data)
Ion Group has acquired Dash Financial. Whether or not this ends up being a good marriage will come down to the people making the tech platforms, Anthony says.
JP Morgan AM develops AI quant tool that uses mind maps to build thematic funds
ThemeBot uses textual relevance and revenue attribution to construct a list of stocks, which is then verified by JPMAM’s active equity analysts.
Waters Wrap: The New World of ESG (And GameStop & Interop)
While the Biden administration is already targeting environmental issues with early executive orders, Anthony says that it’s financial giants that will have the greatest effect on ESG investing in the near-term.
Data providers target data deficiencies in muni bonds market
Companies like Ice are looking at ways to help municipal bond investors gain transparency into a historically opaque market.
This Week: Refinitiv ESG; Nikko/GoldenSource; Causality Link/Eagle Alpha; Crux & more
A summary of some of the past week's financial technology news.
BlackRock looks to predictive ESG data, rather than point-in-time
Mary-Catherine Lader says that the asset manager is building out new modeling tools to help users better understand how the decisions a company makes today can affect their performance in the future.
State Street focuses on 6 data vendors for ESG analysis
State Street’s Chris Berry explains how the asset servicer winnowed 60 ESG data providers down to six, and why this strategy has proved to be effective.
Goldman taps alt data for economic forecasts during pandemic
Economists at the bank leveraged a combination of public and third-party data to make conclusions about the future during uncertain times.