FINRA and SmartStream also FinTech announcements this week.
Partnership Will Facilitate Eikon and Symphony Links
Securities trading could get a little easier with the integration to come between Thomson Reuters’ Eikon system and the Symphony Workflow Platform.
The two have decided to work together to facilitate the sharing of Eikon objects such as charts, news and data via Symphony’s messaging and collaboration platform, officials from both vendors say.
“The integration, slated to be available later this year, will drive productivity across the financial services community through an integrated workflow solution,” according to Thomson Reuters. “Users who have both Thomson Reuters Eikon and Symphony will be able to share Eikon content directly through the Symphony messaging and collaboration platform. If the recipient also has Eikon then they are able to share live data, news and charts to support dynamic, real-time collaboration. The integration will leverage both Eikon and Symphony open APIs.”
The new partnership is “another important step towards breaking down barriers to efficiency in financial markets,” says Deb Walton, global managing director of customer propositions at Thomson Reuters, in a prepared statement. “While Eikon users can already share Eikon content with counterparts via our strategic open Eikon Messenger platform, this partnership gives our customers the choice to extend these collaboration capabilities to the Symphony community.”
The Symphony integration is part of the Thomson Reuters open platform strategy, “following on from the recent launch of its Side by Side Integration API for Eikon which enables a more seamless workflow for users by integrating Eikon with multiple applications on a single desktop,” according to Thomson Reuters.
The Thomson Reuters instant messaging (IM) service, Thomson Reuters Eikon Messenger, is part of Eikon and available as a standalone, free application on desktops and via mobile devices, officials add.
Symphony’s community now contains 200,000 licensed users across 170 companies, including 40 of the world’s top asset managers and 25 of the largest global banks.
FINRA to Hold Blockchain Symposium as Part of FinTech Outreach
Self-regulating organization (SRO), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has launched an Innovation Outreach Initiative to facilitate a dialogue with securities industry participants and its first event will be a Blockchain Symposium in New York on July 13.
The effort is to help FINRA get a better grasp of the financial technology innovations and their impact on the industry, officials say.
“The initiative will build on recent efforts by FINRA to focus on fintech, such as the launch of a new fintech webpage that highlights emerging fintech topics and FINRA materials, including pieces on blockchain technology and digital investment advice,” according to FINRA officials.
In addition, FINRA has created a cross-departmental team led by its Office of Emerging Regulatory Issues, responsible for carrying out the initiative and working closely with industry participants, officials say. The new team will take the lead on a number of program elements, including:
- Creating a Fintech Industry Committee to facilitate a continuous discussion on fintech developments and how FINRA’s rules and programs interact with technology innovations;
- Conducting regional roundtables to provide a forum for market participants (including FINRA members and non-members) to share thoughts, ideas and concerns regarding fintech topics;
- Developing timely publications on fintech topics, such as the increased adoption of regulatory technology applications and how this may impact the securities industry;
- Enhancing FINRA’s existing internal processes to effectively communicate with the industry, including training for staff responsible for coordinating with member firms on fintech issues;
- And increasing collaboration with other regulators, both domestically and internationally.
“The knowledge gathered through this initiative will help FINRA consider whether there are additional steps it should take to further facilitate fintech innovations in the securities industry,” FINRA officials say.
The Blockchain Symposium in New York City will be a half-day event that will bring together regulators and industry leaders to discuss blockchain/distributed ledger technology (DLT) and the opportunities and challenges that it presents, officials say.
More information is at http://www.finra.org/industry/finra-blockchain-symposium/
SmartStream RDU to Offer Reference Data Service for MiFID II
The SmartStream Reference Data Utility (RDU), founded by Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and SmartStream, will be offering a new Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II) reference data service, officials say
The new service, intended to help financial services firms meet regulatory requirements that start January 2018, is now in testing with customers, officials say.
The RDU offers an integrated reference data set to support pre-trade price transparency, post-trade reporting and transaction reporting, sourcing data from ESMA, ANNA, GLEIF, the National Competent Authorities and trading venues, officials say.
“In workshops with over 40 Systematic Internalizers and other industry participants, we’ve observed a wide variance in MiFID readiness,” says Peter Moss, CEO for the SmartStream Reference Data Utility, in a prepared statement. “Our goal is to shield customers from what is a very fluid MiFID environment, accelerate their implementation program and protect their critical path from gaps in availability of key data sets and regulatory interpretation. We are already in testing with clients, helping prepare them for the industry tests that will take place in the summer.”
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