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, 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.

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.

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).

FTSE Russell, a multi-asset index, analytics and data provider, has released reference price files for the digital asset market in partnership with Digital Asset Research (DAR). The so-called FTSE DAR Reference Price – Benchmark Assets are designed to meet investor needs for accurate price discovery, transparency and consistency in the digital asset market, as well as the requirements of the EU Benchmarks Regulation. There are 182 blockchain-based benchmark and non-benchmark assets included in the FTSE DAR Reference Price files. They are listed across 12 fully vetted and 19 watchlist digital asset exchanges representing about $400 billion in market capitalisation.

Gresham Technologies has signed consultancy Data-Xchange Technologies as a distribution partner for its Clareti software platform in Sub-Saharan Africa. The platform addresses financial control, risk management, data governance and regulatory compliance. Data-Xchange provides process automation services for financial services firms, enabling clients to manage operational risk, compliance and control challenges. Data-Xchange’s Ross Thompson says: “This region is no stranger to regulation and the need to control and process all types of data sets. The partnership will mean our customers will have access to next-gen products that can replace aging legacy solutions that are unable to fulfil this requirement.”

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has published a discussion paper for public consultation on Regulatory and Supervisory Issues Relating to Outsourcing and Third-Party Relationships. Coverage includes the financial sector’s response to COVID-19, which highlighted benefits and challenges of managing the risks of financial institutions’ interactions with third parties, and common concerns about the possibility of systemic risk arising from concentration in the provision of some outsourced and third-party services to financial institutions. Responses to the discussion paper must be submitted by January 8, 2021.

Bloomberg will make Credit Benchmark’s credit risk data, derived from risk views of large financial institutions, available on the Bloomberg Terminal and to license for enterprise use cases. The anonymised consensus data adds to existing credit risk datasets and risk indicators, providing complementary content to help market participants assess the credit quality or risk of default of a counterparty, company or entity, all integrated within their existing workflows. Credit Benchmark data can help support risk management, loan and debt underwriting, portfolio optimisation, supply chain risk management, investment idea generation, and is a means of assessing ongoing credit quality.

The Derivatives Service Bureau (DSB) has fulfilled plans to expand regional representation of its Technology Advisory Committee (TAC) working on the development of the Unique Product Identifier (UPI). A new two-year term of the TAC begins today, under the auspices of new chair Chris Pulsifer, a software development manager from Bloomberg, and including six members based in Asia, one in the Middle East and North Africa region, 10 in North America, and 13 in Europe. The UPI has, to date, been acknowledged by regulators including the CFTC and ESMA. More are expected to follow in coming months.

In the latest Brexit news, ESMA has confirmed that the three central counterparties (CCPs) in the UK – ICE Clear Europe, LCH and LME Clear – will be recognised as third country CCPs eligible to provide services in the EU after December 31, 2020. The EC has adopted an equivalence decision that will make the UK CCPs equivalent for 18 months. The equivalence decision is the first of several conditions to be met for recognising a third country CCP under EMIR, including the establishment of cooperation arrangements with home supervisors.