Waters/Feature
Target2-Securities: Give and Take
Work on the Target2-Securities project, the pan-European settlement platform developed by the European Central Bank, continues to gather pace ahead of its 2015 launch date. What will it mean for central securities depositories, which are outsourcing…
60 Seconds with ...
Justin Wheatley, CEO, StatPro
Conquering Form PF
Form PF, requiring US funds managing at least $150 million to submit an unprecedented amount of data to the SEC, came into effect in 2010 as part of Dodd–Frank, and the deadlines are now starting to kick in.
The Risk FIX: Technologists Eye FPL Risk Guidelines
In June, FIX Protocol Ltd. released a new batch of risk-control guidelines for futures and options contracts executed via algorithms and direct market access, notably setting out a framework for pre-order acceptance checks. Tim Bourgaize Murray finds…
Dark Pools Rising
Off-book trading remains a fundamental part of the trading landscape, despite the best efforts of regulators to force dark trades into the open. By Steve Dew-Jones
Team Player: JPM WSS CIO Richard Anfang on Going Agile, Sharing Tech Across the Business
Managing technology at a company the size of JPMorgan is no small task. But by leveraging the collective power of the firm, and adapting to a fast-paced environment, Worldwide Securities Services CIO Richard Anfang is ensuring that the business is…
Risk on the Move: Campbell Targets Data Volumes, Risk
As data volumes have exploded in recent years, systematic commodity trading advisor Campbell & Co. decided it needed a better way to store, distribute and visualize its data, so it turned to OneMarketData and Panopticon for the solution. By Anthony…
Going for Gold: Tech Answers Demand for Physical Holdings
The world’s oldest asset has enjoyed renewed popularity, with prices hitting contemporary highs. But wealth managers are beginning to demand more than ETP shares—investors and institutions want the real deal. As Tim Bourgaize Murray explains, technology…
SaaS vs. IaaS: Do the Evolution
Some consider software-as-a-service not a mere alternative to infrastructure-as-a-service, but an evolutionary outgrowth of it. As SaaS adoption grows, firms want to make sure they can still stand out from all the other users of utility services. By Jake…
Crowded House: Too Many FX Electronic Platforms?
Given the number of releases within the foreign exchange market of late, it’s fair to say that the most liquid asset class is experiencing a technological revolution. Is there an over-saturation of platforms, however, and what level of sophistication is…
Are You Ready for 'Bigger' Data?
Banks’ legacy systems are struggling to cope with the ever-increasing volumes and speed of data. Steve Dew-Jones highlights some of the major considerations for the financial services industry if it is to catch up with other sectors.
Twitter: Alpha Generator?
Social media has revolutionized the way people communicate, personally and professionally. But can financial services institutions use the information shared through internet phenomena such as Twitter and Facebook to generate alpha? By Steve Dew-Jones
Eris Exchange Seeks to Futurize, Standardize, Capitalize
Eris, the Greek goddess of discord, inadvertently started the Trojan War by pitting the gods against each other. Neal Brady doesn’t want a war, or even discord. He wants Eris Exchange to grow through the unity of standardized contracts. An innovative…
The Center Ground: CCPs Could Shift—Not Eliminate—Systemic Risk
On July 4, 2012, the Council of the European Union adopted a regulation that will see standardized derivatives contracts in Europe cleared through central counterparties. Designed to reduce systemic risk in the over-the-counter derivatives markets, how…
Mountain Lions: Pursuit of IT Innovation Keeps BlueMountain Ahead of the Pack
BlueMountain Capital Management, under the leadership of Michael Liberman, has assembled a core of technologists and quants that have made the New York hedge fund one of the most innovative asset managers in the industry for the best part of a decade. By…
Quantifying Catastrophe: Inside Cat Bonds
Catastrophe bonds, a type of insurance-linked security, have made a strong push in 2012, enabled by sophisticated modeling technologies used to predict and price their underlying events. Tim Bourgaize Murray examines what makes this intersection of…
Forum and Function: Ideas Spring from Online Forums
Behind the big, complex ideas that make financial technology work, there is one small, simple idea. Jake Thomases looks beneath the million-dollar buzzwords at the humble internet forum, which is helping to spread big ideas faster than ever before.
Layer Cake: The Rise of Platform-as-a-Service
Cloud is the catch-all term encompassing a number of different components. Of those, software-as-a-service is the most prominent, although platform-as-a-service now offers similar, predominantly hardware-focused benefits to the financial services…
Momentum Trading's Garrett Nenner Combines Tech Savvy with Human Logic
Garrett Nenner has spent the last two decades shuffling between the sell-side and buy-side worlds. Now at broker Momentum Trading, Nenner has learned to combine technological savvy with human logic. By Anthony Malakian with photos by Amy Fletcher
Cantor Fitzgerald CTO Todd Berlent Runs Technology Like an Ultra-Marathon
Whether developing corporate strategy or completing an ultra-marathon, Todd Berlent exhibits a relentlessness few might expect from a CTO. But, as he sets about implementing a broader vision for technology at Cantor Fitzgerald, fewer still should…
Speed Trap: The Challenge of Risk Management On Demand
Volatility in the markets, the advent of algorithmic trading strategies, and ever-increasing trading volumes at faster speeds have led to the need for risk aggregation that can be run on demand, writes Steve Dew-Jones.
Vendor Relationships: What Lies Beneath
Consensus among buy-side firms is that there can sometimes be a world of difference between expectations and reality when dealing with a vendor. Steve Dew-Jones canvasses opinion on the most important considerations before awarding a technology or…
When It Comes to Mobile, All Devices Welcome
Phones and tablets aren’t just for Angry Birds. Mobile devices have allowed financial professionals to operate on a 24/7 basis, and be less attached to the office. Jake Thomases explores whether they should be allowed to embed work functionality into…