In the sprint toward the T+1 transition to shorter settlement in May 2024, the official line from the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. (DTCC) is that testing is proceeding smoothly. Behind the scenes, there are concerns regarding end-to-end testing, buy-side participation, and a dearth of operational testing. Val Wotton, managing director and general manager of… Read More >>
FinTech Brief: Tokenbridge Offers Tokens for KYC
A tokenization platform provider, Tokenbridge will be using blockchain technology to improve know your customer (KYC) and identification processes for a financial services data business known as the Tracing Group (TTG), officials say. The “hyper-personalized tokens create infallible, verifiable and re-usable records of personal details,” according to Tokenbridge, based in Gamlingay, Sandy, in the United… Read More >>
FinTech Brief: CME to Unify NDF Liquidity Pools
CME Group will combine its two non-deliverable forward (NDF) liquidity pools on the Electronic Broking Services (EBS) Market platform onto a single trading venue by October 2024, depending upon regulatory approval, officials say. The combination will bring together market participants “across regulatory jurisdictions” in a unified global trading environment to improve market efficiency, according to… Read More >>
DSB Forms Advisory Committee to Reshape Identifier Landscape
The Derivatives Service Bureau (DSB), a reference data resource for over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives, has formed a Governance Advisory Committee (GAC) that will widen the range of DSB users providing industry guidance for the International Securities Identification Number (ISIN) and the Unique Product Identifier (UPI) services, and to help expand the identifier landscape. “The GAC is… Read More >>
FinTech Brief: ISO & SOC Certify Oxane’s Offerings
Oxane Partners, a solutions provider to private markets, has achieved global information security accreditations by completing Systems and Organizations Control (SOC) audits and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 27001 certifications, officials say. “The completion of SOC audits (SOC 1, SOC 2, and SOC 3) emphasize Oxane’s strong controls over financial reporting, and handling of… Read More >>
FinTech Brief: Baillie Gifford & big xyt Launch Liquidity Tool
big xyt, a provider of data and analytics solutions for securities firms, has launched the Portfolio Liquidity Analysis solution, which was developed in partnership with investment management firm Baillie Gifford, officials say. The solution “enables buy-side firms to gain an independent view” of the liquidity of equity portfolios because of the use of “reliable and consistent… Read More >>
FinTech Brief: CAIS Expands Collaboration with Pershing
CAIS, an alternative investment platform for independent financial advisors, has expanded its relationship with the Pershing clearing, custody, and wealth management services division of BNY Mellon. The expansion was announced late last month “after the launch of CAIS Solutions, a new SaaS [Software as a Service] platform,” which applies CAIS technology to centralize and streamline… Read More >>
FinTech Brief: Northern Trust to Support Costco’s DC Plan
Costco Wholesale Corp. has selected custodian bank Northern Trust to provide custody, daily valuation, and brokerage services for Costco’s defined contribution (DC) retirement plan, with $29 billion in assets, officials say. Costco, based in Seattle, is known as the world’s third-largest retailer and operates 861 warehouses, including 591 in the United States and Puerto Rico…. Read More >>
A Climate Data Platform Prototype Debuts at COP28
Inadvertently, I have stumbled upon another climate-related bit of news. This time it’s about the Net-Zero Data Public Utility (NZDPU), described as “a unified, global, open climate data repository” whose information can be used by many sectors including financial services. A variety of securities firms would welcome free, reliable data about the climate change efforts… Read More >>
FCMs Want Automation Over Headcount for Recs
Futures commission merchants (FCMs) offering sell-side clearing have been making “significant progress in automating” post-trade reconciliation since 2021 and want to apply technology rather than staff members to recs problems, according to the fourth quarter edition of the “Acuiti Sell-Side Clearing Management Insight Report.” However, firms have “some way to go to fully optimize the… Read More >>
