Editors letter
Editor's Letter - We're doing very nicely, thank you
I was at a presentation fairly recently where a research company claimed that there would be a significant contraction in the number of third-party technology vendors as a result of (among other things) buy-side firms reducing their third-party…
SEC shows its hand on dark pool regulation
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has revealed more concrete proposals aimed at increasing transparency within dark liquidity venues, potentially weakening the primary value proposition dark pool providers have brought to capital markets in…
Enlightening the Dark Pools
It was bound to happen eventually-the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken on dark liquidity pool reform ( see story, page 1 ). In a five-to-nothing vote, the regulator has sent a clear message to the industry that things are going to…
A Lesson in Latency from LA
Last Thursday night, seeking inspiration for my column, I had the pleasure of watching a playoff game between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. In a 45-minute seventh inning, the Yankees came back from a 4-0 deficit to end the…
Time to Return to Yesteryear?
Last week, I had dinner with executives from the International Securities Exchange (ISE) and its parent, Deutsche Börse. After a long evening of interesting conversation about the unintended knock-on effects of equities regulation on the equities options…
No Comment
Commentators: in this age of real-time news, blanket video and the Internet, who needs 'em? Major news providers, apparently. In the same week that Wall Street mourned legendary dealmaker Bruce Wasserstein, two deals of note emerged to boost the…
Exchanges on the Ascendant
I would like to thank everyone who attended our Best Execution 2009 event in Manhattan last week for making the conference such as roaring success. I would also like to thank our event sponsors who made the free event possible. Also, to our internal team…
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Reform
Thomas Peel didn't invent the police force to manage law-abiding citizens, but rather to bring criminals to justice. Thus it's hardly surprising that market participants sometimes feel uncomfortable about the role they are cast in when dealing with…
The Behemoth Awakens
It's a safe bet that LSE Group CEO Xavier Rolet has surprised many in the industry with the recent acquisition of exchange technology provider MillenniumIT, and now it appears that he has set his sights on multilateral trading facility (MTF) Turquoise (…
'Death Panels' for Derivatives?
I'm always wary of visiting the doctor because I worry I'll discover that I have something seriously wrong and will have to undergo a lengthy course of treatment that prevents me from getting on with other things. Likewise, Wall Street is no fan of…
The Risk Factors
EDITOR'S LETTER
Editor's letter - The trickle-down effect
The buy side has changed. Of that there is little doubt. Buy-side firms simply aren't making the returns they were two years ago, which has impacted their profitability by paring their performance and management fees. This new and challenging operating…
Lessons unheeded
"The good news is, I don't really see financial reform happening this year. "So claimed Linda Lord, managing director and head of US legislative and regulatory affairs at UBS, in an unmistakably partisan speech before this year's TradeTech West 2009…
Achieving Best Ex
There is one thing that industry participants can agree upon: The global economic recovery is not around the corner, which means best execution is more important today than ever before, especially considering the high levels of competition we are seeing…
Different Cities, Same Issues
A theme that crops up again and again, whether you're in Chicago or London, is the issue of how to address rising volumes of market data. While the US options market has been facing this problem for some time-and addressing it with innovations such as…
The Deal of the Millennium
Operators of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) left many industry watchers scratching their heads last week when they announced the planned £18 million ($30 million) purchase of Sri Lanka-headquartered exchange platform provider MillenniumIT ( see story,…
Putting a Value on Valuations
Valuations aren't just a part of firms' investment and portfolio management strategies; they are also big business, as Thomson Reuters' recent forays into evaluated pricing with the acquisition of part of Moody's Evaluations, and the hires of staff from…
A Chance of Clouds
Watching the evolution of cloud computing, I can't help but have that nagging feeling of déjà vu as various people in the industry stake out different strategies on how to link cloud computing environments.
Keeping Us in The Loop-Literally
This week, Inside Market Data takes to the road again, this time to Chicago, home of the Cubs, the White Sox, and quite a few Bulls and Bears beyond the sports teams of the same name.
Reaping What You Sow
Now that August is over, we are about to enter my favorite season of the year: autumn. There is no place better in autumn than the Hudson River Valley or Western New York, no matter what those trash-talking New Englanders might say. There is something…
Keeping Up with the Co-Los
Low-latency data and its surrounding technologies have become big business. I hadn't realized just how big until I saw a report last week from Brazilian exchange group BM&F Bovespa showing the increases in direct market access trading, and specifically…
Editor's Letter - Pressure to perform
In the investment management industry, performance is everything. It matters not a jot how well celebrated a fund's principals are, how long and blemish-free their track records are, or how good last year's returns were, if this year, this quarter, this…