FTF News's free fintech update includes items from Goldman Sachs and Bloomberg, SmartStream RDU, ThetaRay, BNP Paribas and AcadiaSoft.
Watson Wheatley Signs Firms in Europe & Hong Kong
Reconciliation solutions vendor, Watson Wheatley, reports that it has signed three new clients — firms based in Hong Kong and Southern Europe — for its hosting platform created specifically for the iRecs system. The vendor is not naming the new clients.
“Following competitive bidding processes and thorough ‘proof of concept’ projects the iRecs system was chosen to provide comprehensive data reconciliation between internal portfolio accounting systems and prime brokers, custodians and administrators,” according to the vendor’s statement.
The client wins are signs of growing overseas interest in Watson Wheatley’s offerings, particularly the hosted version of the iRecs system, officials say.
“Importantly two of the three new contracts have already led to further introductions and scheduled proof of concepts with other funds,” says Tom Wheatley, chief operating officer (COO) for Watson Wheatley, in a prepared statement.
Goldman Sachs to Use New Bloomberg FX Analytics Service
Bloomberg reports the release of a new analytics hosting service for algorithmic orders on FXGO, its global foreign exchange (FX) electronic trading solution.
Goldman Sachs will be the first liquidity provider to participate, Bloomberg says.
The technology being employed “integrates Bloomberg’s FX execution and straight through processing tools with Goldman Sachs’ pre-trade, in-flight and post-trade analytics,” according to a statement.
FXGO is available on the Bloomberg Terminal.
SmartStream RDU Launches SFTR Data Service
The SmartStream Reference Data Utility (RDU) now offers a cloud-based security reference data service to help financial services firms meet the European Union’s Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR) April 2020 deadline, officials say.
The new RDU offering also helps firms deal with the complexity of sourcing and deriving reference data, officials add.
“Gathering data required to complete SFTR reports could well prove a headache for most firms when the reporting obligations begin next year,” according to SmartStream RDU officials.
“The SFTR requires banks and investment firms to start reporting Securities Financing Transactions (SFT) to a registered Trade Repository beginning 14 April, 2020. Each transaction report must include the details of the transaction, the counterparties and the specifics of the security involved and many firms are now focused on preparing for that date,” officials add.
The SmartStream RDU acquires instrument reference data and “then normalizes, enriches and maps this information into the format required by SFTR,” officials say. The data is then made available via “a simple, cloud-based API. Data is updated daily and five years of history is retained and accessible for back-loading, corrections and effective audit controls.”
“Although ESMA’s reporting guidelines have yet to be fully finalized, proactive firms will now be planning carefully how best to meet SFTR reporting obligations,” says Peter Moss, CEO, SmartStream RDU, in a prepared statement.
ThetaRay Opens Mexico City Office
ThetaRay, which characterizes itself as a provider of artificial-intelligence-based data analytics, reports the opening of its Latin America headquarters in Mexico City, Mexico.
The new office will provide “local support for ThetaRay’s Latin American customers, assisting them in the detection of financial cybercrime schemes,” the firm says in a statement.
The Mexico City office is ThetaRay’s fifth office worldwide, in addition to offices in Israel, the United States, the United Kingdom and Singapore.
The office will be headed by LatAm Managing Director Felipe Mora Cervera.
BNP Paribas Partners with Kantox
BNP Paribas and Kantox, a London-headquartered fintech firm specializing in FX risk management procedures and processes, have initiated a strategic partnership solution.
The agreement enables BNP Paribas and Kantox to jointly offer Kantox’s hedging solution to BNP Paribas’s clients across the EMEA region, which consists of Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
The hedging solution, called Dynamic Hedging, “allows corporate treasurers to fully automate and streamline FX workflows,” according to the firms’ statement.
It will complement the product suite available on Centric, BNP Paribas’ digital banking platform, the statement adds.
Former ICAP, Nasdaq Exec is AcadiaSoft’s New Chairman
John Shay
AcadiaSoft Inc., a collateral management services provider for the non-cleared derivatives, has appointed industry veteran John C. Shay as its new chairman for its board of directors, officials say. Shay succeeds Howard Edelstein, who had served on AcadiaSoft’s board since the founding of the company in 2009.
Shay was previously senior vice president and global head of fixed income and commodities (FICC) at Nasdaq, where he led the global commodities and fixed-income areas within its global trading and market services business, officials say. Shay was also a member of the Nasdaq executive committee and reported directly to the CEO.
Prior to his Nasdaq post, Shay served as senior vice president for global markets at Virtu, where he was responsible for managing outside venue, vendor and trading relationships, officials say.
In addition, Shay spent 25 years at ICAP, rising to executive vice president and global head of sales for ICAP electronic broking (IEB) for fixed income and foreign exchange, officials say. “In his early years at ICAP, he helped develop strategic partnerships in China, Hong Kong, Japan, South America and the European Union and was instrumental in growing the company’s market share in U.S. Treasuries, mortgage-backed products and repos,” according to AcadiaSoft.
Shay currently serves as managing partner at Capital MarketServices, Inc., a wholly-owned clearing and execution services business that he founded. The company was designed to improve market access for the non-bank community in the over-the-counter (OTC) and exchange-traded markets.
Shay also serves as senior advisor at Broadway Technology and at Virtu Financial Inc., where he advises the CEO on all FICC-related matters, officials say.
“As we look to the final phases of the uncleared margin rules and beyond, John’s industry knowledge and relationships will be tremendous assets to AcadiaSoft,” says CEO Chris Walsh, in a prepared statement.
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