LSEG Commits to Transition Clients from Eikon to Workspace by End of 2024

The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) intends to transition its clients from the Refinitiv Eikon platform to its newer Workspace system by the close of 2024. During LSEG’s 2023 H1  earnings call, David Schwimmer, LSEG’s chief executive, revealed that Refinitiv’s financial platform, Eikon, would be discontinued in early 2025, anticipating that the shift to Workspace would largely be complete by the end of 2024.

The transition comes after LSEG’s acquisition of Refinitiv in 2021 for $27bn, resulting in subscription revenue making up over 75% of the group’s earnings. LSEG’s collaboration with Microsoft on the Workspace platform has been significant, with Microsoft investing a 4% stake in the exchange at the end of last year.

Moody’s Analytics Wins Contract to Fight Financial Crime in European Union

Moody’s Analytics has won a framework contract worth up to €34 million from the European Commission to strengthen its anti-fraud, money laundering and financial crime effort. The four-year contract will be managed by the Commission’s European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and will use the Orbis database operated by Bueau van Dijk, a Moody’s Analytics subsidiary, to access company data, information on connected individuals, and risk indicators.

Organisations working with the Orbis data will include the European Court of Auditors, European Banking Authority, European Public Prosecutor’s Office, Europol and up to 30 Directorate Generals of the EC. They will apply the data to form a comprehensive understanding of the increasing threat of fraud and financial crime in the EU.

Europe Adopts Reporting Standards for CSRD Disclosures

The European Commission has given assent to its own set of guidelines for the estimated 50,000 companies that will be required to report their ESG performance data under the Corporate Sustainable Reporting Directive (CSRD). The European Sustainability Reporting Directive considers frameworks established by the International Sustainability Standards Board and GRI and will be applicable when companies first report under CSRD in 2025.

Auditing Body Releases ESG Data Assurance Proposal

The global auditing standards setter, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), has released its proposals for ISSA 5000, which will cover the validation of ESG data. As the IAASB explained to ESG Insight last week, the standard – if adopted – is hoped to harmonise the way ESG data is verified by auditors.

ION Boosts XTP Execution Solution with Direct Access to Cboe Europe Derivatives

Trading and risk management solutions vendor ION has upgraded its XTP Execution solution to give direct access to pan-European equity derivatives exchange Cboe Europe Derivatives (CEDX). XTP Execution offers automated trade workflow, integrated order management and execution, and robust connectivity to global markets.

With CEDX’s stated aim to foster larger, more liquid markets for European equity derivatives, direct access to the exchange via XTP Execution promises to facilitate better connectivity and to lower barriers to entry for its customers.

LedgerEdge Enters Administration Amid Tough Funding Climate

London-based corporate bond trading platform, LedgerEdge, has entered administration just three years after its inception. The company launched as a multilateral trading facility (MTF) in the UK last year, with approvals from both the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and US regulatory bodies.

LedgerEdge aimed to modernise the corporate bond market by combining artificial intelligence and distributed ledger technology to offer better connectivity, new liquidity opportunities and complete data control. However, the firm cited an “extremely challenging funding environment” as the main reason for the closure.

With Intelligence Plans Growth Acceleration Following Investment by Motive Partners

With Intelligence, a provider of investment data and intelligence for allocating, fund-raising and business development in the public and private markets, has received a majority investment from funds advised by Motive Partners, a private equity firm focused on financial technology. Intermediate Capital Group, which originally invested in With Intelligence in 2020, will invest further alongside Motive.

The company plans to use the investment to accelerate growth as it focuses on delivering leading connectivity, data and insights solutions to the limited partner and general partner communities. Founded in 1998, With Intelligence is a provider of data, intelligence and connectivity to the global asset management industry, with an integrated product suite of data, insights and events covering hedge funds, private credit, private equity, real estate and traditional asset management.

Capco Partners Pyramid Analytics to Simplify Decision Making

Capco, a Wipro technology and management consultancy dedicated to financial services, has partnered Pyramid Analytics, a business analytics and decision intelligence platform provider, to help financial institutions simplify decision-making through AI-augmented, automated, and collaborative insights. The partnership brings together Capco’s financial services experience and expertise in data and analytics with Pyramid’s strategic, enterprise-wide approach to business intelligence. Pyramid’s Decision Intelligence Platform offers a low-code/no-code solution to data preparation, business analytics, data science, and machine learning, empowering faster, more intelligent decisions.

Guardian Capital Selects FactSet and DataRobot to Boost Analytics Platform

Guardian Capital LP’s i3 Investments Team, a portfolio management team within Guardian Capital that combines AI with human intelligence for stock selection, has chosen FactSet’s Programmatic Environment (FPE) and DataRobot to enhance its analytics platform and improve end-to-end quant workflow.

The relationship enables i3 Investments to combine FactSet’s quantitative product suite for factor creation and research with DataRobot’s integrated AI and Machine Learning (ML) platform to help solve complex investment management problems.

Advantage Futures Adopts Eventus’ Validus for Trade Surveillance

Advantage Futures, one of the highest volume clearing firms in the futures industry, has chosen Eventus Systems’ Validus platform for its trade surveillance needs. After extensive research and testing, Validus was selected for its advanced machine learning capabilities, customisable features, ease of use and the knowledge and responsiveness of the Eventus team.

The Validus platform, which handles billions of messages per day and is used widely throughout the industry across asset classes, offers a combination of automated processes, including machine learning, to provide alert triage and escalates the most actionable alerts for further investigation.