LSEG and JPXG to Launch TOPIX-based Climate Indices

New climate indices are to be launched based on the TOPIX 500, offering investors a net-zero benchmark for companies listed on Japan’s stock market. Compiled by London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) and Japan Exchange Group (JPX), the FTSE/JPX Net Zero Index Series will be based on the European Union’s Climate Transition Benchmark and will be aligned to meeting net-zero targets by 2050. They will also integrate Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI) Management Quality scores, which indicates how far a company has built climate-change policies into its operations. The indices, which will go live early next year, can be used for passive or active investment strategies and will also be available for research use, the LSEG said.

Goldman Sachs Adds Carbon Footprint Measures to Marquee

US investment bank Goldman Sachs has built carbon footprint analyses of companies covered on its Marquee digital marketplace, enabling institutional investors to track the emissions of stocks and corporate bonds within their portfolios. The calculations are based on Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions data as well as carbon intensity levels and net-zero commitments. Users will also be able to compare their portfolios against benchmarks that will enable them to analyse carbon contributors by sector, industry and region. Analytics within the offering comply with global standards including the European Union’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation and the those of the Task Force on Climate-Related Disclosures.

UK’s FCA Seeking Views on ESG Product Labelling

The UK’s financial watchdog is seeking views from market participants on how investment products should be labelled with regard to their sustainability and corporate social responsibility profiles. The Financial Conduct Authority said it was also gathering opinions on supporting entity-level and product-level disclosures. The announcement was made on Finance Day at the COP26 UN climate summit in Glasgow. The findings will shape policy proposals that will go out for consultation in the spring, the FCA said. In its latest Financial Lives survey, the regulator found that 80 per cent of respondents said they wanted their money to “do some good”.

CQG Launches New Suite of Execution Technologies

Chicago-based trading solutions vendor CQG has launched a new suite of execution technologies designed to give market participants new tools to achieve greater efficiencies and optimal trade execution, particularly for large or complex order types. The new suite builds upon software assets CQG acquired from Blue Trading Systems in June 2020, and leverages CQG’s internally-developed technology aimed at providing smart trade execution opportunities for buy-side and sell-side firms.

Kevin Darby, formerly co-founder of BTS who joined CQG last year to lead the integration of the software, is now leading CQG’s new Execution Technologies business unit.

The offering is available through multiple platforms, including CQG Integrated Client, CQG Desktop and various CQG-supported application programming interfaces (APIs).

TNS Strengthens Backbone for European Equities Exchanges

TNS, the financial markets infrastructure provider, has invested in strengthening its European backbone and data solutions, offering ultra-low latency TNS Layer 1 in-datacentre architecture, and expanded market data from all major European equities exchanges.

The company has also added Wiener Boerse AG, which operates the stock exchanges in Vienna and Prague, to its market data portfolio, and is now working with Deutsche Börse to provide access to Eurex and Xetra market data for non-member firms. The additions complement TNS’ existing European equities data portfolio, which includes Cboe Europe, Euronext, Aquis, LSE and SIX Swiss, among others.

MayStreet Adds High Performance Query API to Market Data Lake

New York-based market data technology vendor MayStreet has launched a High Performance Query (HPQ) API to its Market Data Lake, a cloud-based repository of global, cross-asset exchange data, to complement its existing APIs and web-based Analytics Workbench.

The HPQ API enables clients to instantly stream near real-time and historical full-depth data at distinct time intervals of their choosing, without having to pull down an entire day’s worth of market data. In addition to raw tick data, the new API also offers pre-configured calculations for TWAP, VWAP or Completion Time.

The HPQ API is designed to support a number of use cases, including TCA, order routing analysis, volatility fitting, trade desk support and risk. Future enhancements to the API will be introduced starting in Q1 2022.

EU publishes final draft in RTS

The final proposals have been published on investor disclosure rules for European Union Taxonomy-linked products. The EU’s three financial watchdogs published the latest draft of the Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS), which aims to provide a blueprint on reporting on financial products that qualify as sustainable under the EU Taxonomy and Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). The proposed draft addresses a number of thorny issues, including the status of sovereign bonds in terms of taxonomy alignment.

SEC chief urges collaboration on reporting standards

Companies, governments and market participants must work together to create global standards on climate-related data reporting, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s chief has urged. In a webinar hosted by the Principles for Responsible Investment and the London Stock Exchange Group, SEC Commissioner Allison Herren Lee said “we must seek ways to collaborate across jurisdictional boundaries to promote consistency in climate-related disclosure”. This was vital to ensure investors made the right decisions to help solve the climate crisis.

CACEIS selects Cardabel machine learning to optimise reconciliation

European asset servicing group CACEIS has implemented Cardabel’s machine learning (ML) technology to optimise securities and cash position reconciliation as part of the digital transformation of its middle-office outsourcing offer. The Cardabel technology reduces processing times and enhances CACEIS’ reconciliation offering. Sandrine Legrand, head of middle-office at CACEIS, says: “The challenge was to reduce turn-around times for clients’ reports while dealing with a constantly rising volume of flows. Cardabel’s offer is the perfect fit, and enables employees to focus on higher value tasks that raise client satisfaction”.

Contour extends use of LEI to inclusion in trade finance network

Contour, a digital trade finance network, has partnered the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) to enable the use of Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) within its network and to financially support its members in obtaining their own LEI. By adopting the entity identifier, Contour’s members will benefit from increased confidence among their trading counterparties, lower data reconciliation costs, reduced transaction discrepancies and improved risk management. Contour plans further use of the LEI including building the identifier into its KYC processes and collaborating on the GLEIF-led Verifiable LEI (vLEI) initiative.