Hackers Are Exploiting Microsoft Exchange Weaknesses Following media reports of cybersecurity vulnerabilities via the popular Microsoft Exchange Server, the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) has issued a letter to the financial services industry that “urges all regulated entities with vulnerable Microsoft Exchange services to act immediately.” The letter from the Cybersecurity… Read More >>
Gensler’s SEC Chair Nomination Advances Amid GOP Pushback
Gary Gensler, President Joe Biden’s nominee for SEC chairman, last week won the approval of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee by a vote of 14 in favor to 10 against, signaling some resistance among Republicans as his nomination moves to a full vote before the U.S. Senate. If approved by the Senate, Gensler and the… Read More >>
Crashes & Competition Are Jumpstarting Digital Transformations
Although the coronavirus pandemic has loomed over global capital markets for much of 2020, the digital transformation of the securities industry is expected to continue into 2021 and beyond. Asset managers embarked on the current technology upgrade path following the 2008 financial crisis. The shock to the system forced them to improve operations just to… Read More >>
Voting Has Begun for the FTF Awards!
It’s awards season for Hollywood and, by the way, for the securities operations industry as FTF has just unveiled the nominees for the 2021 FTF News Technology Innovation Awards. This is the 11th year for the FTF Awards, and our categories and honors have evolved along with the many shifts in financial markets and across… Read More >>
Wipro Buys Capco for $1.45 Billion
Acquisition Expected to Close by June 30 The London-based Capco, a financial services and technology consultancy, will become part of Wipro Ltd., the Bangalore-based global IT and services provider as a result of a $1.45 billion acquisition. The agreement will enable Wipro to offer “digital, consulting and technology services to financial institutions in the Americas,… Read More >>
Northern Trust Expands Quant Analytics Support via Partnership
Northern Trust to Offer Venn from Two Sigma Northern Trust is expanding its relationship with quantitative analytics solutions provider Two Sigma so that it can offer the Venn cloud-based investment analytics platform to its clients, officials say. The Venn analytics and research support have been designed for asset allocators. “Venn provides analytics on a pre-trade… Read More >>
Empire State Bans & Fines Bitfinex & Tether
New York Attorney General Letitia James is requiring Bitfinex and Tether, two crypto-currency trading platforms, “to end all trading activity with New Yorkers.” Her reason for the exile? Their practices are allegedly “fraudulent and deceptive” and the crypto-traders are “hiding approximately $850 million in losses around the globe,” the New York A.G. says in a… Read More >>
T+1 in Two Years Says DTCC
Is T+1 settlement possible in two years? Officials at the Depository Trust and Clearing Corp. (DTCC) think so and have released a two-year industry roadmap for a one-day settlement cycle after execution for U.S. equities, also known as T+1. Building upon the successful T+2 effort in 2017, the DTCC is making its case via a… Read More >>
Elizabeth Warren Asks FINRA to Probe Robinhood
Robinhood’s Role in the Gamestop Frenzy Under Scrutiny Wall Street critic and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has called on self-regulatory organization FINRA to “respond to Robinhood’s role in recent market volatility, its decision to cut off customers’ trading, and the broader concerns about market fairness that these events represent.” Warren is referring to discount… Read More >>
Pandemic Pushes IVP Clients to Expedite Digital Projects
More than two-thirds of the customers of vendor Indus Valley Partners are forging ahead with pandemic-inspired digital transformations, but they should adopt a “digital first” approach when it comes to outsourcing and data management concerns, says Gurvinder Singh, CEO of IVP. Singh’s remarks are at the heart of an annual trend outlook that IVP compiles… Read More >>
