Buy-Side Technology Awards 2016: Best Buy-Side EMS—REDIPlus

REDI Technologies, a mid-sized execution management system (EMS) provider, has a strong reputation on the buy side. Founded in 1992, it was acquired by Goldman Sachs in 2001 and was spun off into an industry-backed consortium in 2013, which included some of the biggest names on Wall Street, including Goldman. Data behemoth Thomson Reuters, looking to compete with the likes of Bloomberg, Eze Software, Portware, Fidessa and FlexTrade, among others, didn't have a strong execution client base on the buy side.

A merger seemed like a natural fit as REDI was seeking more independence as it grew. That merger became a reality when Thomson Reuters acquired REDI in September this year. The timing couldn't have been better: The acquisition was about to close as this magazine went to press, with REDI entering the partnership having won this year's best buy-side EMS category.

“This fits perfectly to take REDI from being a broker-owned platform to a consortium platform to a completely independent technology company under the Thomson Reuters umbrella. For us, it’s been a long and very well-defined journey,” REDI CEO Rishi Nangalia told Waters at the time of the merger.

Over the past year, REDI has worked to fully globalize its broker-neutral platform across all asset classes, in particular its middle-office solutions, which include risk and compliance tools, position and allocation management, and stock-locating tools. In addition, REDI recently rolled out an entirely redeveloped HTML5-based Spread Trading platform.

While Thomson Reuters has much to gain from REDI as it will become a true multi-asset, end-to-end trading solution, the benefits are likely to flow in the other direction, too. Thomson Reuters’ news, market data and transactions capabilities will enhance the use of REDI’s liquidity discovery tools. By incorporating REDI’s independent trading capabilities, Thomson Reuters will enable buy-side traders to move seamlessly from pre-trade activities to trade execution across multiple asset classes through a single screen—a win-win for both entities. 

Over the past year, REDI has worked to fully globalize its broker-neutral platform across all asset classes, in particular its middle-office solutions, which include risk and compliance tools, position and allocation management, and stock-locating tools.

The deal is expected to close before the end of the year and Nangalia believes that this pairing will make REDI a perpetual contender in this category. “From a work standpoint, it’s going to be business as usual alongside some exciting initiatives as we start doing some cool things together,” Nangalia says.