Free
The Secret Is Knowing Where to Look
It's perhaps not the most appropriate film to be thinking of during the holiday season, but I can't seem to get Monty Python's Life of Brian out of my head. I'm thinking specifically of when Eric Idle sings, "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" at…
Making Measurement Work, Making Ends Meet
This week, Inside Market Data contains a special report on the importance of low-latency market data in today's modern trading environment. Yet in the same issue, we detail the problems at latency monitoring software vendor Trading Metrics, which is…
Are We Ready for Low-Tech Terrorism?
Over this past Thanksgiving holiday, instead of watching the traditional football games, my eyes were glued to the cable news networks and the horrible events that unfolded on the other side of the planet in Mumbai.
The Gift That Keeps on Giving
The appearance of Santa Claus outside the New York Stock Exchange last week alongside NYSE chief executive Duncan Niederauer for NYSE's annual Christmas tree-lighting ceremony was no coincidence. Christmas certainly came early last week for NYSE, in the…
Where Have All the Margins Gone?
I spoke last week with Brent Weisenborn, president and CEO of the Agora-X ECN, about the launch of his firm's new platform ( see story, page 1 ) and his description of a "tsunami of regulation coming out of Washington, D.C." caught my attention. It is an…
Paging the CLO
A little over a year ago, a couple exchange officials introduced me to a new C-level job description in the industry-chief optimization officer. The role, as it was explained to me, is to ensure that all trading systems within the investment bank deliver…
A Sign of Eastern Promise?
One of the issues under fire at last month's Asia-Pacific Financial Information Conference in Hong Kong was China's proposals to effectively create a state-run monopoly on the flow of financial news and market data into the country, in an apparent effort…
Finding the Secret Ingredient
It seems that my editor's letter in DWT 's recent latency special report ( DWT , Nov. 10) in which I discuss the trend of hiring IT staff outside from the financial verticals and what impact that would have for organizations has gotten some push back…
Stand Up, Joe the Data Manager
Last week, Americans went to the polls to elect a new president, and voted for a platform of hope and change. So now that the election is finally over, I hope my evenings will change from being dominated exclusively by my fiance's recent diet of Wolf…
Welcome to the Brave New World
It seems clear that now that Barack Obama has been elected the 44 th president of the U.S., things will change. In the realm of geo-politics, there seems to be a breath of fresh air and hope on the global stage. However, now that the Democratic Party has…
Happy Birthday, Mifid!
As coverage of the global financial meltdown and the U.S. general election reaches a fever pitch, it's easy to forget that just 12 short months ago, the E.U. rolled out the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (Mifid).
Reaching for The Clouds
If you listen to financial technologists willing to speak in public, it sounds as if there is still a debate raging on whether investment banks and other financial institutions should adopt cloud computing. It reminds me of the arguments long ago about…
Get Ready for APFIC
With the financial markets in turmoil, my girlfriend and I last week made our first foray into the commodities markets with the purchase of a diamond. Yes, it's an engagement gift, but it's also an investment that can become an heirloom and an item of…
Whither Exchanges
Now that we have reached the latter half of October, the multilateral trading facility (MTF) space is set to heat up as Bats Europe prepares to go live ( see story, page 11 ) and interdealer broker Icap announced its intention to bring yet another MTF…
Entering Uncharted Waters
Trying to discuss any financial technology issue while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen more than 2,000 points in the past five days of trading is like trying to have a causal conversation over a wailing klaxon: It will be drowned out by…
Next Stop: iTrade?
With the Dow Jones Industrial Average plumbing depths even lower than US political campaigns, how do you keep in touch with fluctuating prices when you're not beside-or can't bear to look at-your data terminal?
But Will It Work?
As DWT went to press, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the $700 billion Wall Street bailout package. After seeing the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummet more than 700 points after the chamber failed to pass it the first time around, it's nice…
What a Difference a Year Makes
Much of the discussion at last year's European Financial Information Summit centered around how the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive would re-shape the European financial markets. Now, one year on, the markets are certainly seeing unprecedented…
Business Is Still Business
All eyes in the market are turned to the negotiations between the Democrat-led Congress and the Bush administration about a proposed $700 billion bailout of the U.S. economy. But last week, for at least one rainy day in Manhattan, a large number of buy…
Can Emerging Markets Save Wall Street?
Someone suggested to me this week that the city of New York might tear down the statue of a bull that stands on Broadway, not far from Wall Street, to more accurately reflect the current state of the financial markets. In return, I suggested that adding…
Like a Bull to the Slaughter
Whether you fall into the camp that says governments should intervene to protect orderly markets by supporting companies such as AIG that threaten to collapse, or the group that says market forces should be allowed to run their course even if that means…
Darwin in Action
After several quarters of whistling past the graveyard, Wall Street and the global markets have succumbed to all the toxic debt that the market has been generating for the past few years. What does this mean from an IT perspective? Except for the…
Dear Clara and Joe...
Last week, Clara Furse and Joe Ratterman, chief executives of the London Stock Exchange and BATS Trading, which is gearing up to launch an alternative venue in Europe trading LSE-listed stocks, exchanged words via open letters on the state of competition…
Weaving a Market Fabric
The European markets will soon see the number of active multilateral trading facilities (MTFs) more than double and will come a step closer to creating a new European market structure, which industry consultant Bob Giffords dubs "a market fabric." With…