In the U.S., there have been many serious discussions and efforts to move the securities industry from the trading day plus two (T+2) settlement cycle to T+1. In addition, the regulators, standards groups, and industry associations are mulling the changes that must be made to facilitate the shift to T+1. But, at some point, the… Read More >>
Is a Roku-Designed TV Bonus Worthy?
As Wall Street navigates bonus season, I have another entry in my ongoing quest to provide information about gadgets, services, and consumer goods worthy of your bonus. This time I am eager to shine the spotlight on Roku, the San Jose, Calif.-based maker of digital media players that have an operating system for streaming digital… Read More >>
Nominations Are Open for the 2023 FTF Awards!
We are thrilled to launch the nomination process for the 2023 FTF News Technology Innovation Awards — an industry-wide competition now in its 13th year — presented by Financial Technologies Forum (FTF) and the FTF News service. In addition to our classic securities operations and related categories, we have four new categories that reflect industry… Read More >>
Can SWIFT Make Post-Trade Ops More Transparent?
SWIFT is strongly urging that the industry adopt Unique Transaction Identifiers (UTIs) as a way to bring more transparency to post-trade processing. The new UTI support would come via the SWIFT Securities View capability, which has had a successful pilot test, dubbed the “SWIFT Securities Tracking Pilot,” according to officials of the financial messaging, systems,… Read More >>
9/11 Recovery Volunteers Urged to Meet Registration Deadline
Twenty-one years after 9/11, more than memories of lost loved ones, family, and friends linger. Physical and mental health concerns for those who were directly impacted as they were volunteering to help with rescue efforts may become grim realities, especially after two decades. Medical and financial resources have become available for those who were directly… Read More >>
UMR May End DerivOps As We Know It
If your firm has not yet met the September 1 deadline for Phase 6 of the ongoing saga of the Uncleared Margin Rules (UMR), you are probably not reading this blog posting. You will be up to your ears in a gargantuan effort to meet the deadline or to find a legal way to sidestep… Read More >>
19 State AGs Oppose BlackRock’s ESG Pension Push
Another anti-ESG push from the right is emerging and this time it’s taking aim at what is arguably the world’s largest asset manager. The attorney general for the Grand Canyon state Mark Brnovich earlier this month created “a coalition of 19 states that sent a letter to BlackRock Inc., calling out its practices of putting… Read More >>
It’s Time to Check the T+1 Playbook
To say the least, the securities-trading industry has been a little busy since it shifted to a trading day plus two business days settlement (T+2) cycle in 2017. Yet, despite market volatility, disruptive technologies, epic political and social changes, a pandemic, soaring inflation, and an ongoing war in Europe, the industry-wide drive to an even… Read More >>
Should Risk & Resilience for Ops Be One?
Should the securities operations industry rethink the gap between operational resilience and operational risk? Should those working in operations bring the two disciplines closer together, and by doing so, develop a stronger architecture for securities operations? Those are the questions that Guy Warren, CEO at ITRS Group, is pondering and he wants you to ponder… Read More >>
Futures Industry Honors the Passing of John W. O’Brien, Sr.
There is sad news out of Chicago as officials at futures brokerage and clearing firm R.J. O’Brien & Associates (RJO) report that a former chairman and CEO of the firm, John W. O’Brien, Sr., 68, died Saturday, July 9, after a long illness. “We’re deeply saddened to lose Johnny, my dear friend, our long-time board… Read More >>