Infrastructure Insights

The exponential increase in non-cash transaction volumes and the ever-rising valuation and buyouts of payments groups reflect the incredible growth in cross-border and cross-channel commerce. Instant connectivity is redefining marketplace dynamics and its effect on the relationship between banks and merchants is undeniable. In this evolution,... read more

Facebook-supported virtual currency Libra has faced regulatory scrutiny following its unveiling earlier this week, driven by what blockchain and cryptocurrency market participants believe is a fear over the social media firm’s technological power and potential ability to affect fiat markets. “The regulatory reaction has been fierce... read more

Transaction vs holdings-based performance calculations It’s important for your firm to know the pros and cons of each method. Whilst both methods provide inputs to analysis providing a breakdown of the returns, enabling the effectiveness of various investment strategies to be evaluated and explained, it is important to understand that... read more

Subhankar Sinha was appointed head of blockchain for BNY Mellon in May. Prior to this role Sinha founded Nabartham LLC, which advised start-ups on ecosystem governance, strategic partnerships, and the market fit of blockchain products. Sinha was also a director at PwC in the US, where he was the co-founder of the firm’s blockchain... read more

Counterparties that will now come under the new uncleared margin rules threshold have misjudged the level of work and technology build necessary to be able to fulfil requirements set out by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (Isda)’s SIMM methodology, market participants agree. “One thing we are seeing in terms of... read more

Issues remain in the interpretation of reported trade data, according to Val Wotton, managing director, head of derivatives product and strategy at DTCC. “I think from a reporting standpoint the main challenges are around consistency of data and how the data element is being interpreted in each jurisdiction, what does each data field mean,... read more

It goes without saying that for commercial, business and retail banks, the digital experience is becoming synonymous with the customer experience. If banks want to keep up with the megabanks in the industry, they will need to adopt a more digital approach. However, for those stuck in a tangled web of legacy technology architecture, going... read more

Many banks and Financial Services (FS) firms have considered deploying Artificial Intelligence (AI) to address specific challenges or improve particular functions within their organisation. A number of them are already on their own AI journey, and the ROI and benefits of AI in their businesses are becoming clearer and more tangible. One area of... read more

Issues with algo wheels remain in both the equities and futures space, despite growing popularity of the software, according to market participants on a panel discussion at the FIA’s IDX in London this week. “It is a complex problem,” said Sanji Shivalingam, global head of algorithms and analytics at UBS.  “What we... read more