FNZ officials report that they have found a complicated, partial exit from their complicated acquisition of GBST, which was ultimately vetoed by a U.K. regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Known as a wealth management platform provider, FNZ has just announced that it has sold GBST to Anchorage Capital Partners, a global private equity… Read More >>
FinTech Still Drives Ops: Q&A with Confluence
(Confluence Technologies, a solutions provider for investment management firms, is no stranger the strong currents of change that ripple through the financial technology industry. Just last month, Confluence, backed by Clearlake Capital and TA Associates, acquired Compliance Solutions Strategies (CSS), a cloud-based regtech solutions vendor, and Investment Metrics, a provider of investment data, performance, analytics,… Read More >>
Senate Makes Behnam the New CFTC Chairman
Lost in the tsunami of federal government budget battle news is the welcome development that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has a new, official chairman — Rostin “Russ” Behnam, and that the stage has been set for a full roster of commissioners. On Dec. 16, the U.S. Senate voted unanimously to approve Rostin Behnam… Read More >>
JPMorgan Fined $200M for Skipping Digital Recordkeeping
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is paying a hefty $200 million in fines to the SEC and the CFTC on charges that it failed to retain and store trading-related digital communication records of staff members of JPMorgan Securities (JPMS), a broker-dealer subsidiary of the financial services giant. JPMorgan will be paying $125 million to the SEC… Read More >>
Hearsay’s A.I. Tools Help Firms Cleanse Social Content
Hearsay Systems, a digital communications compliance vendor, has launched two new capabilities that use artificial intelligence (A.I.) — one to sift out inappropriate images in videos and direct messages, and another to detect offensive text— all to help financial advisors make certain their posts are compliant with regulatory and industry standards. The new features are… Read More >>
Cloud-Native Apps Are Better: Q&A with CompatibL
(Over the past two years, securities firms have begun to embrace the next chapter of cloud computing — cloud-native systems that exploit services and pipelines. This is essential for firms that want to reap the full benefits of the cloud, says Olga Orekhvo, chief operating officer (COO) at CompatibL Technologies. FTF News recently got time… Read More >>
ISITC Promotes Vice Chair to Top Post
Industry standards trade group ISITC has named Kristin Hochstein, the current vice chair, to be its new chair for the 2022-23 term, and she will take over for Lisa Iagatta, who will finish her three-year term as chair by the end of this month. The group, which develops standards and best practices for financial services… Read More >>
ICE & RIMES Weave ETF Data Into Key Products
Integration Opens Access to Equity & Fixed Income Data Exchanges and technology company Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), owner of NYSE, reports that it has integrated exchange-traded funds (ETF) data managed by RIMES into key offerings such as ICE ETF Hub, ICE Portfolio Analytics, and ICE FI Select offerings, officials say. The enhancement will enable clients to… Read More >>
Clearing Is Broken: Q&A with RQD*’s CEO
(Consolidation across the clearing sector has resulted in less competition, fewer options for securities firms, and a broken system, says Michael Sanocki, CEO of RQD* Clearing, a new correspondent clearing provider. Thus RQD’s mission is to reach out to firms that are “sorely underserved” and “ripe for disruption.” RQD, which officially launched last month, offers… Read More >>
Wells Fargo Fined $2.25M for Document Storage Woes
Ironic, isn’t it, that just when cryptography enthusiasts are touting the capability of the blockchain to memorialize complex sequences of transactions, major units of a big bank find themselves in trouble over their own record-keeping? FINRA, the broker-dealer industry’s self-regulatory authority, charges Wells Fargo Clearing Services and Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network — two units… Read More >>
