Back to Basics
My apartment is slowly becoming cloud based. I was struck by this the other day, when, answering e-mails on my iPad while on my living room's sofa, I was listening to music streaming from my computer two floors up, pausing briefly to control my television through my tablet, which in itself was taking content from my house mate's computer next door.
At the same time, I bought a song from iTunes on my phone, which instantly appeared in my Mac's computer library, shortly before I moved back upstairs and started pushing music from my computer, wirelessly, to my dock. All of this was done within a minute or two, which really emphasizes how usability is a key consideration for technology across the board.
It's a current theme in recent Waters features and articles, as well. Tim Murray covered it in his user experience story, while my esteemed editor touches on it in his February letter. Likewise, while in New York a few weeks ago, I saw how usability was at the core of MarketAxess's rates platform, featuring grouped indices and products through a decent interface that can be accessed with the minimum of clicks and movements.
Often we focus a lot around the guts of a technology development, such as high-frequency trading, combined execution and order management systems, the features of smart order routers and developing high rates of straight-through processing, without taking into account the most basic factors. After all, a Maserati is a very pretty machine, but without the right dashboards and controls, it's just an engine in a nicely shaped metal box.
For consumers, as demonstrated by the technology in my home, ease of use has been a key factor for a long time. Apple has pretty much built its business and predicated its continued success on this very idea for the past ten years. For the financial services industry, with the growth of mobile platforms and cloud, it'll only continue to be important.
After all, a Maserati is a very pretty machine, but without the right dashboards and controls, it's just an engine in a nicely shaped metal box.
To finish up, a quick reminder that nominations for the first annual Sell-Side Technology Awards are still open. You have until March 13 to put yourselves forward, so get submitting. The interest we've seen so far has been spectacular─it promises to be a great event, and we look forward to hosting you in New York on April 23.
Only users who have a paid subscription or are part of a corporate subscription are able to print or copy content.
To access these options, along with all other subscription benefits, please contact info@waterstechnology.com or view our subscription options here: http://subscriptions.waterstechnology.com/subscribe
You are currently unable to print this content. Please contact info@waterstechnology.com to find out more.
You are currently unable to copy this content. Please contact info@waterstechnology.com to find out more.
Copyright Infopro Digital Limited. All rights reserved.
As outlined in our terms and conditions, https://www.infopro-digital.com/terms-and-conditions/subscriptions/ (point 2.4), printing is limited to a single copy.
If you would like to purchase additional rights please email info@waterstechnology.com
Copyright Infopro Digital Limited. All rights reserved.
You may share this content using our article tools. As outlined in our terms and conditions, https://www.infopro-digital.com/terms-and-conditions/subscriptions/ (clause 2.4), an Authorised User may only make one copy of the materials for their own personal use. You must also comply with the restrictions in clause 2.5.
If you would like to purchase additional rights please email info@waterstechnology.com
More on Trading Tech
This Week: ISI buys EPFR; Bloomberg, Warsaw Exchange, Fenergo and more
A summary of the latest financial technology news
US Supreme Court clips SEC’s wings with recent rulings
The Supreme Court made a host of decisions at the start of July that spell trouble for regulators—including the SEC.
TMX’s indexing pivot bears first fruit
The acquisition of index provider VettaFi has boosted revenues in the exchange’s analytics division, but further growth could mean taking on the heavyweight data providers like S&P, FTSE Russell, and MSCI.
Kimsey debuts ‘Who bought what’ dataset to help vendors target sales
Kimsey Consulting’s latest report breaks down reported industry spend by client type, product type, and geography to help suppliers and investors pinpoint future sources of demand.
Waters Wrap: After CrowdStrike crisis, will anyone learn?
Several bank and hedge fund sources tell Anthony that while there’s plenty to be learned from the CrowdStrike bug, some will more than likely forget those lessons in a few weeks’ time.
This Week: FCA, Plato/Turquoise, Franklin Templeton, and more
A summary of the latest financial technology news.
CME: CFTC OKs clearing move to Google Cloud
The CFTC has given the Chicago-based exchange approval to run its clearing and settlement infrastructure on the Google Cloud Platform, while the exchange and vendor have extended their partnership to last until at least 2037.
JP Morgan touts DLT, tokens for collateral management
Distributed-ledger technology could make moving non-cash collateral more efficient, said managing director Toks Oyebode during an Isda conference on Thursday.