Arcesium Opens Office in Lisbon

Data management provider Arcesium has opened an office in Lisbon, Portugal, its first in continental Europe.

The New York-headquartered company whose data and investment lifecycle services are used by financial institutions that have a combined US$4.3 trillion under management, said the move was part of its global expansion. It has also offices in the US, UK and India.

ISS STOXX Offers Banks, Insurers New ESG Compliance Data Tool

ISS ESG, the sustainability arm of ISS STOXX, has unveiled its Industry Average Emissions Intensity dataset for use by banks and insurance companies.
The latest addition to the Switzerland-headquartered data and technology provider’s Climate Solutions suite of tools is designed to help companies comply with regulations including the European Banking Authority (EBA) Pillar 3 ESG Disclosures. The tool gives clients the data needed to estimate the emissions of smaller companies and other investments on which sustainability data is scarce.

SymphonyAI Extends Financial Crime Data Solution

Artificial intelligence-powered software-as-a-service provide SymphonyAI has expanded its financial services offerings with a product to help organisations overcome entity data shortcomings that could enable financial crime.

The Palo Alto, California-based company said its Entity Resolution service enables clients to solve issues such as records duplication, poor data quality and data fragmentation. The company, which focuses its financial services business on fraud prevention, said the service would also aid in identifying concealed relationships, all of which could be used by criminal networks.

tanX Achieves $1 Billion Quarterly Spot Trading Volume

Dubai-based digital asset trading platform tanX reported a significant milestone in Q2 2024, processing $1 billion in spot trading volume across 3 million transactions, reflecting a 70% increase from the previous quarter. The platform’s success is set against a backdrop of rising interest in decentralised trading solutions, particularly in the wake of FTX’s collapse, which has driven traders towards non-custodial and safer methods of executing trades and storing assets.

tanX, operating as a decentralised exchange (DEX) on Ethereum, emphasises compliance, regulation, and transparency, catering to institutional clients through specialised liquidity lines. tanX bridges the two models of decentralised and centralised exchanges (CEXs), allowing CEXs to integrate its non-custodial trading solutions while maintaining their existing user experience, underscoring the platform’s innovative approach in a regulatory stringent environment.

Baton Systems Adds JSCC to CCP Network

Baton Systems has achieved successful bi-directional integration with the Japanese Securities Clearing Corporation (JSCC) via its Core-Collateral ecosystem. The integration allows JSCC’s Clearing Member clients to directly access APAC’s largest central counterparty (CCP), enhancing efficiency by providing normalised data and real-time balance updates. The addition of JSCC complements existing integrations, including SGX, expanding Baton’s network to thirteen CCPs, handling 95% of global initial margin.

Baton’s Core-Collateral platform automates the movement of cash and securities, offering users consolidated and real-time updates on margin requirements and collateral eligibility. The integration of collateral eligibility data into Baton’s API further streamlines the management process by enabling automated, real-time determinations of eligible assets. This reducing operational burdens, improving decision-making, and enhancing financial efficiency and net interest income for firms, according to the company.

Tucker Dona, Head of Business Development and Client Success at Baton Systems, commented: “The addition of JSCC to the Baton Core-Collateral ecosystem is a big step to increasing access to the most strategically important CCPs for our clients. As a result, we are able to assist more FCMs and Clearing Members globally to automate and optimise a significant proportion of their collateral holdings. This is incredibly important in helping these firms reduce dependency on manual processes and optimise collateral management at a time when market volatility and a higher interest rate environment place growing pressure on the margin posting process.”

NeoXam Provides GP4 Solution to French Fund Administrator

French fund administrator FB Fund Services will integrate financial software specialist NeoXam’s GP4 product to administer its investment valuation, accounting, reporting, and auditing processes.

The unit of private equity group 123 Investment Managers (123IM) will deploy GP4 to monitor bookkeeping in real time, improve workflow automation and seamlessly integrate key data sources, Paris-based NeoXam said in a statement.

GP4 is designed to streamline back-office operations and is managed by NeoXam on behalf of clients. Its integration by FB Fund Services is expected to “reduce the long-term total cost of ownership and risk of its data operations and maintenance”, the statement said.

NeoXam’s software and technology helps clients process more than US$20 trillion-worth of assets every day for its 15,000-plus users.

valantic FSA Partners with Nasdaq to Develop Nasdaq Rates Trader for Nordic and Baltic Markets

valantic FSA, the electronic trading and automation solutions provider, has announced a partnership with Nasdaq to develop Nasdaq Rates Trader, a new web-based user interface for Nasdaq’s Nordic and Baltic fixed income markets. The interface will offer access to Nasdaq’s data and trading functionalities through a modern and intuitive front-end.

Key features include advanced data visualisation and customisable workspaces. The beta testing phase for the new UI is scheduled to begin in February 2025, with a full launch planned for October 2025.

Horizon Trading Solutions Launches Mutualised Hosting Services in Partnership with TNS

Electronic trading and algorithmic technology provider Horizon Trading Solutions has partnered with financial market infrastructure vendor Transaction Network Services (TNS), to launch its new mutualised hosting services.

The collaboration allows Horizon to utilise TNS’ robust hosting and hardware solutions as a colocation provider, enabling on-premise services at the Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX) data centre for multiple clients. This partnership aims to enhance Horizon’s service capabilities, offering clients reduced latency and improved time to market at competitive prices.

TNS, with its extensive experience in the Asia Pacific financial markets and partnerships with key institutions like HKEX, SGX, and JPX, aims to provide traders quick access to these markets with lower total ownership costs. This expansion reinforces the company’s commitment to the region, while strengthening Horizon’s service offerings.

Abaxx Commodity Futures Exchange Adopts ION’s XTP Technology for Energy Transition Markets

The Abaxx Commodity Futures Exchange and Clearinghouse has selected ION’s XTP technology to support its new market initiatives aimed at the ongoing energy transition. The Abaxx Exchange, which commenced trading in Singapore on 28 June, has collaborated with ION to deliver secure and scalable post-trade clearing and risk management solutions.

The Abaxx Exchange introduces five new centrally cleared, physically deliverable commodity futures contracts, enhancing market participants’ ability to manage energy transition strategies with improved price discovery and risk management tools. These contracts aim to establish benchmarks for global LNG and voluntary carbon markets, with future plans to include battery metals.

ION’s XTP technology is used by exchange clearing members, providing functionalities such as real-time position valuations, margining, and commission calculations. It also facilitates end-of-day processes including settlement calculations and report generation, ensuring robust support for the exchange’s operations.

DSB Publishes Stakeholder Feedback Report on ISIN, CFI and UPI

The latest report making recommendations for standards for identifying, classifying and describing over-the-counter derivatives has been published by the body charged with bringing order to the naming of the securities.

The Derivatives Service Bureau (DSB) said its Industry Consultation Final Report summarises feedback from industry stakeholders on the OTC International Securities Identification Number (ISIN), the Classification Financial Instrument code (CFI) and the UPI service provision.

This year’s report, the DSB’s seventh on the topic, focuses on proposed automation enhancements, data leakage prevention and data labelling for the US$20 trillion-plus derivatives market.

·     DSB managing director Emma Kalliomaki will be among speakers at A-Team Group Data Management Insight’s next webinar on Thursday, which will take a deep dive into how financial institutions can optimise their use of identifiers and standards. Click here to register for the event.