Data Management Insight Brief
Moody’s Acquisition of Cortera will Expand Orbis Database
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 Reveals Increased Use of Blockchain in Asset Management
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.
MCA Finance Selects NeoXam to Support Growth
MCA Finance has selected NeoXam’s NxTracker3 technology to manage its front and middle office activities. The software covers all financial assets, but will be used at MCA Finance to manage specific products developed by the company, specifically structured products and OTC securities, in a customised way. NxTracker3’s native interconnectivity offers simplified exchanges with MCA Finance’s counterparts. It also meets the company’s operational and regulatory requirements, and will support growth of the business.
InvestCloud Recapitalisation Creates Global SaaS Wealth Solutions Platform
InvestCloud has completed a recapitalisation that values the business at $1 billion. New financial investors are led by Motive Partners with Clearlake Capital Group and include InvestCloud client shareholders. Under the terms of the agreement, Motive will contribute two portfolio businesses, Finantix and Tegra118, to InvestCloud, creating a global Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) wealth solutions platform. The combined company will offer a wealth advisor platform, private banking platform, financial supermarket, and custom financial platform. InvestCloud CEO John Wise says the recapitalisation will help meet InvestCloud’s ultimate objective of building the world’s largest financial supermarket.
Broadridge Partners Third Economy to Offer ESG Advisory Services
Broadridge Financial Solutions has weighed into the ESG investment market with advisory services offered in partnership with Third Economy, a provider of sustainable investment research. The ESG advisory services combine Broadridge’s data, technology and communications expertise and Third Economy’s proprietary methodology for systematically evaluating sustainable investment efforts of companies and enabling clients to move from ESG strategy through to execution.
Xenomorph Opens Boston Office
Xenomorph has extended its reach in the US with an office in Boston. Founded in London 25 years ago, the company opened its first office in the US in New York City in 2005. The company’s presence in Boston builds on a number of client engagements. Naj Alavi, president, Xenomorph Software, Inc, is leading the expansion. He says: “We have long supported the thriving Massachusetts capital markets community from NYC, but as we continue to service a growing list of asset managers and hedge funds, we felt the time was right to open doors in Boston.”
Finastra Moves Fusion Invest to the Cloud
Joining the drive to help asset managers digitally transform their operations, Finastra has moved its investment management solution Fusion Invest to the cloud. The cloud version of the solution is intended to bypass the shortfalls of on-premise software, giving asset managers agility to scale and access innovative products and services from Finastra and its partners in areas such as portfolio management and reporting. These solutions, along with Fusion Invest, are available on FusionFabric.cloud, an open and collaborative development platform and application marketplace underpinned by the Microsoft Axure cloud.
North Reef Capital Management Selects SS&C
North Reef Capital Management, a long/short equity fund adviser founded in 2020, has selected SS&C’s front-to-back office solution including Eze technology acquired in 2018 to run its operations. The firm will use Eze Eclipse’s front-office capabilities and SS&C’s administration capabilities to run and grow the fund. SS&C says more than 80 emerging funds are using the integration of Eze technology and SS&C’s fund administration services.
Fenergo Automates Client Onboarding Systems for Mizuho Americas
Mizuho Americas has deployed Fenergo client lifecycle management (CLM) software to automate Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulatory processes, digitalise workflows and accelerate client onboarding. The Fenergo implementation replaces manual processes and provides Mizuho Americas with a single, comprehensive view of customers across all business lines. Mizuho Americas’ parent, Mizuho Financial Group, is also planning to implement Fenergo’s CLM solution across its Global Securities division.
DSB Calls for Product Committee Members from the Middle East and Asia
The Derivatives Service Bureau (DSB) is calling for new members for its Product Committee. Applications close on 13th January 2021. Existing membership includes representatives from the buy-side, sell-side, custodians, data vendors, trading venues and trade associations, and has been chosen based on asset class and workflow expertise, as well as geographical representation. The committee is well represented from the North American and European regions, but wants to expand membership from the Middle East and Asia to broaden industry collaboration. The committee will begin its third term in February 2021 and will include work on the Unique Product Identifier (UPI).