Etrading Software, the exclusive registration authority for the ISO standard for digital token identifiers (DTIs), is calling for industry participants to join its product advisory committee – the application deadline is May 17, 2021. The scope of work includes providing advice on the use of DTIs and the issuance process for the identifiers, as well as advising Etrading on future product enhancements. Etrading states: “We are looking for participants who have expertise in standards, and who appreciate the unique considerations digital assets require when creating effective identifiers.”

CNP Assurances Group has selected NeoXam’s DataHub to house all its pricing and reference data on a single platform. The group wanted a centralised platform to shorten the time needed for data management processes that were previously handled manually. By providing increased visibility into data underpinning all investible assets, DataHub supports the group’s UChange programme, which aims to develop data optimisation, security and innovation. 

Colfondos Pensiones y Cesantías, one of Colombia’s largest pension funds, has selected the cloud-based Charles River Investment Management Solution to manage its domestic and global equity and fixed income portfolios on a consolidated front and middle office platform. The Charles River solution allows Colfondos to meet the demands of its investment process and automate support across asset classes for the geographies it invests in. It also allows the firm to enter new markets in Chile and Peru at enterprise scale by leveraging Charles River’s open architecture platform and interoperability with an ecosystem of liquidity, data and regulatory reporting providers.

Moody’s has completed its acquisition of Cortera, a provider of North American credit data and workflow solutions. The acquisition enhances the company’s risk assessment capabilities and extends its coverage in the small and medium enterprise segment. Cortera also augments Moody’s Orbis database of private company information – acquired along with Bureau van Dijk in 2017 – and enhances its KYC, commercial lending, and supply chain solutions.

The Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) has collaborated with Certification Authorities (CAs) and Trust Service Providers (TSPs) to extend use of LEIs beyond financial markets in digital certificates. A CA Stakeholder Group is supporting communication between GLEIF, CAs and TSPs as they collectively aim to coordinate and encourage a global approach to LEI usage across digital identity products. Participation has already been confirmed by China Financial Certification Authority (CFCA), DigiCert, InfoCert, Entrust Datacard, ICAI India, and SwissSign. The collaboration follows ISO’s standardisation of the process of embedding LEIs in digital certificates last year.

Refinitiv has released its 2021 ESG Playbook: Stability and sustainability in the investment community. The annual publication explores ESG trends for the year based on conversations with 24 industry leaders. Topics featured include the development trajectory for the ESG investing industry and sustainable finance as a whole, regulatory changes, transparency in ESG reporting, quality of data, and emerging technologies.

SIX has released SPI Gender Equality Index, an index measuring the number of women in top management at Swiss companies. The index is part of the company’s recently introduced ESG Indices family and uses components from the largest 100 companies of the Swiss Performance Index (SPI). To be included in the index, companies must have between 20% and 80% women on the board of directors, and between 15% and 85% on the management board. Marion Leslie, head of financial information at SIX, says: “This index offers a transparent benchmark to measure gender diversity on Swiss companies’ boards and management committees.”

Etrading Software has been named as the exclusive registration authority for the ISOs standard for digital token identifiers (DTIs). With thousands of crypto-assets in the market, there has so far been no standard way to identify one digital token from another. Identifiers conforming to the new standard, ISO 24165 DTI, will be vendor neutral, open, freely available, and global. The first DTIs registered through Etrading are expected to be available by the second half of 2021. The aim is to give buyers, sellers and regulators confidence they are talking about the same digital token.

Moody’s has made a definitive agreement to acquire Cortera, a provider of North American credit data and workflow solutions. Cortera maintains a comprehensive database of credit information, featuring data and analytics on over 36 million companies. The company gathers data from thousands of sources, enhances the data using AI, and provides analytics, reports and monitoring services to help businesses make informed decisions about their counterparties. The acquisition will augment Moody’s Orbis database – acquired with Bureau van Djik – of private company information and enhance its KYC, commercial lending, and supply chain solutions. 

Research by Global Palladium Fund reveals that 90% of professional investors believe that over the next five years asset managers will come under growing pressure from clients to use blockchain technology to provide greater security and transparency. Asked why blockchain will become increasingly important for asset managers, 51% of professional investors interviewed for the research said it provides more transparency around investments, 35% said it gives investors more information on investment vehicles, 12% said it would meet growing regulatory demands, and 2% said it could reduce costs.