Waters/Feature
Edwin Marcial: No More Mr. ICE Guy
Edwin Marcial has been in the technology driver’s seat since before ICE’s meteoric rise. In the early 2000s, he wore the ‘upstart’ label like a badge of honor. But with the purchase of the NYSE, he doesn’t seem so comfortable with it anymore. By Jake…
Is the Low-Latency Race a Zero Sum Game?
Financial services firms will always strive to be faster and more efficient. But increasingly, the cost and risk of this evolutionary drive are proving too great for some. As a result, the ability to measure and monitor latencies across the enterprise…
In the Public Interest: Tech Critical as Public Investors Seek More Active Approach
A small but influential set of private equity’s limited partners, many of them quasi-public entities like pension plans and sovereign wealth funds, are considering co-investment strategies with their general partners, or even arranging deals directly…
Tech Questions Loom After Major Exchanges Tie the Knot
A period where no meaningful exchange M&A made it to the finish line has been followed by two announced megadeals that appear likely to be approved. Jake Thomases looks at what IT advantage is gained by such massive mergers, and whether these latest…
African Exchange Links Could Draw Investment, Liquidity
The alliances that stock exchanges strike between themselves often turn out to be game-changers for a region’s economy. Marina Daras looks at regional initiatives to link up exchanges in one of the fastest evolving regions of the world—Africa.
Financial Industry Faces Up to Cybersecurity Challenges
While the internet has revolutionized nearly every aspect of the financial markets, it carries with it an implicit level of risk that has only recently started to be properly examined by institutional trading firms. But when it comes to cybersecurity,…
MacKay Shields Weathers Storms with Vigilante's Tech Vision
MacKay Shields has weathered some of the worst storms in recent memory, thanks to a forward-thinking approach to technology, which has been driven in part by its long-serving head of IT. By James Rundle, with photos by Amy Fletcher
US Regulators' Technology Burden
The passage of the Dodd–Frank Act in the US, while necessary, has not just stressed many Wall Street firms’ IT budgets—it has also required a substantial investment on the parts of the US regulators. Anthony Malakian charts the progress that has been…
Futures Trading Algorithms Find Traction
Equities and futures microstructures have always functioned differently—and in terms of algorithmic application, the latter has always benefited from the adventures of the former. From order placement optimization to a revived debate on pricing…
Financial Transaction Tax: Doomed to Fail?
The financial transaction tax, Tobin tax or even the Robin Hood tax—call it what you want—is here to stay. Or maybe not. By Marina Daras
Lone Wolves: Disparate Regulations, Customs Make Asia-Pacific a Tech Puzzle
With a wide array range of local conventions, regulations and customs, Asia-Pacific can be a tough nut to crack when it comes to regional expansion. Where technology is concerned, the idiosyncratic nature of its constituent nations can prove challenging,…
Poland's Central Clarity: CEO Iwona Sroka, KDPW Group
Dr. Iwona Sroka designed the strategy for Warsaw’s KDPW Group to reflect an operational efficiency and a future for capital markets in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) that is increasingly bright. Strength in technology is the key. By Tim Bourgaize…
Risk Management a Challenge When Algos Go Rogue
In an article published in May, Waters explored the problematic task of performing market surveillance in automated, high-frequency trading environments. Another challenging area for algorithmic trading is that of risk management, when questions of risk…
AQR's Path to Reconciliation
In order to improve its reconciliations capabilities, AQR Capital decided it needed to replace its legacy reconciliation system, which relied largely on manual processes. The Greenwich, Conn.-based hedge fund turned to Electra Information Systems for…
Inventing the New Thing Is the New Thing
Innovation is like vacation—people spend more time talking about the amazing places they’re going than they spend actually getting there. There isn’t a company worth its salt where innovation is not part of its agenda, although its application varies…
Risk Management: Time to Get Real
It wasn’t long ago that it was acceptable for capital markets firms to manage their risk on an overnight basis, computing their various measures through lengthy batch processes while the markets slept. But that all changed with the 2008 credit crisis as…
Chief Data Officer: A Role Under Construction
Over the past few years, the capital markets have witnessed the promotion of data executives to the role of chief data officer (CDO), elevating data issues to the C-level. Marina Daras looks at how CDOs are making their way to the top of primarily sell…
The Nuclear Option: Eaton Vance's John Shea
John Shea sits down with Jake Thomases to discuss his interesting pre-Wall Street career and Eaton Vance's IT.
Dodd–Frank Turns Three—What's Next?
July marks the three-year anniversary of the Dodd–Frank Act being signed into law. Anthony Malakian takes a look back at the IT challenges faced, and previews what’s still ahead.
Poles Apart? Tech Push Boosts Poland's Prominence
Capital markets in Central Europe—and especially Poland—have made steady gains after being unlocked by the collapse of the Soviet Union, with new technology helping to both catalyze reform and create jobs. Tim Bourgaize Murray reports from Warsaw on the…
E-Trading Corporate Bonds: Act Two?
In part one of his two-part feature on the electronic trading of corporate bonds, Jake Thomases traveled back in time to understand why an early explosion of credit trading platforms disappeared almost as soon as it arrived. In part two, he asks whether…
SEFs at the Starting Gate, Technologists Prep for Challenges
On May 16 this year, US regulators finalized long-awaited rules that govern various aspects of how swap execution facilities will operate. Several years after the draft rules were first announced, attention now turns to the technology challenges…
Lessons from the Hash Crash
Over the past few months, a series of glitches similar to the one that caused the Hash Crash has made it clear that the financial markets are at the mercy of high-frequency trading machines. Some of these systems feed mostly on social media content,…