About a-team Marketing Services
The knowledge platform for the financial technology industry
The knowledge platform for the financial technology industry

A-Team Insight Blogs

Central Utility for Reference Data is Desirable but Not a Realistic Goal by Next Year, Say RDR Readers

Subscribe to our newsletter

According to the results of our latest reader poll, the majority of you believe that a central utility for reference data is a desirable addition to the market. Over half of respondents, at 52%, indicated a central utility is needed, but said that it is not a realistic goal for next year.

This should be music to the ears of DClear, the wholly owned subsidiary of the investment arm of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), which released plans for its reference data utility in May this year. The DClear team has not yet revealed the full timeline for its project implementation, but given the responses from the majority of Reference Data Review readers, it should take its time to get the foundation work right.

Chief technology officer of DClear, David Penney, reckons the argument for the introduction of a central utility is compelling. He draws attention to the fact that a large proportion of trade breaks occur because of an issue with reference data and claims that his kind of reference data provides no competitive advantage. It seems that the majority of readers agree with him in this regard, and consider the introduction of a central utility in this space a viable concept.

Only 22% of respondents were hopeful that a reference data utility could be a reality by the end of next year – perhaps some of them were privy to information that the 52% weren’t…?

However, not everyone is convinced that a reference data central utility is a desirable goal after all, with 26% of respondents indicating that they did not wish to see one introduced into the market. Perhaps they are concerned that its introduction would complicate matters further or involve prohibitive costs to an already overstretched industry.

There are also a number of issues that would need to be answered before a utility such as this could be introduced, for example, what data types will be covered, where will they source the data, how will they ensure it’s right, how will they encourage people to use the service and how will it be priced?

Subscribe to our newsletter

Related content

WEBINAR

Recorded Webinar: How to simplify and modernize data architecture to unleash data value and innovation

The data needs of financial institutions are growing at pace as new formats and greater volumes of information are integrated into their systems. With this has come greater complexity in managing and governing that data, amplifying pain points along data pipelines. In response, innovative new streamlined and flexible architectures have emerged that can absorb and...

BLOG

Making the Most of Mainframe Structured Data: Webinar Preview

Mainframes still provide the data and computational backbone of many financial institutions but some organisations are encountering challenges as they try to integrate them with newer architectures. Many are incompatible with cloud and server-based architectures as well as APIs. Work-arounds can be achieved but they require middleware that can be costly and time consuming to...

EVENT

AI in Capital Markets Summit New York

The AI in Capital Markets Summit will explore current and emerging trends in AI, the potential of Generative AI and LLMs and how AI can be applied for efficiencies and business value across a number of use cases, in the front and back office of financial institutions. The agenda will explore the risks and challenges of adopting AI and the foundational technologies and data management capabilities that underpin successful deployment.

GUIDE

AI in Capital Markets: Practical Insight for a Transforming Industry – Free Handbook

AI is no longer on the horizon – it’s embedded in the infrastructure of modern capital markets. But separating real impact from inflated promises requires a grounded, practical understanding. The AI in Capital Markets Handbook 2025 provides exactly that. Designed for data-driven professionals across the trade life-cycle, compliance, infrastructure, and strategy, this handbook goes beyond...