Abel Noser Holdings, LLC, a provider of multi-asset trade analytics and agency-only brokerage services, announced it has closed on its previously publicized acquisition of Trade Informatics LLC, a New York based firm offering equities trade cost analysis (TCA), consultative solutions, and a broker-neutral systematic execution platform. According to a story in MarketsMedia news, Trade Informatics brands including TAP Trade Analysis and START Systematic Trading will be added to Abel Noser’s product lineup.

State Street Corporation announced that its Collateral+ business is operational with DTCC’s Margin Transit Utility (MTU), which has been designed for simplifying the transfer of collateral among market participants. By leveraging MTU, State Street’s Collateral+ business will now be able to efficiently validate, enrich, settle, report and monitor third party collateral while connecting to and sharing information with multiple counterparties on behalf of its clients. MTU service helps reduce operational risk by standardizing and automating the margin process from the point of agreement...

Cboe Global Markets announced plans to launch futures on the AMERIBOR® (American Interbank Offered Rate) Term-30 interest rate benchmark. The new futures are expected to be available for trading on Cboe Futures Exchange, LLC (CFE) on business date Monday, September 13, 2021, subject to regulatory review. The AMERIBOR Term-30 benchmark, disseminated by the American Financial Exchange, LLC, is designed for financial institutions in need of forward-looking short-term interest rates as the planned cessation of LIBOR approaches. The benchmark is designed to capture wholesale funding costs for...

The next meeting of the Rule 606 Working Group is scheduled for Monday, August 23, 2021 at 11 am ET. The Working Group will continue its review of a draft presentation to Securities and Exchange Commission personnel on look-through for Rule 606 reporting of options routing. The Working Group also will discuss reporting of order type arrangements under Rule 606(a)(1).

On August 10, 2021, FIF sent a survey to FIF members on Rule 605 for options. This is an opportunity for FIF members to provide input to the SEC before the SEC issues a rule proposal in this area. FIF requests that members provide their survey responses by September 13, 2021. Earlier responses also are welcome. All responses are anonymized.

On August 12, 2021, FIF sent out a survey request to get feedback from FIF member firms on what they consider to be the most important open issues relating to CAT CAIS. The purpose for this survey is to assist the Working Group to identify the key open issues on CAIS and discuss any next steps for following-up with the regulators on these issues. All responses are anonymized. FIF reviewed the initial group of responses during our CAIS Working Group call on August 20, 2021. FIF encourages members to continue to submit responses to this survey, as the Working Group will continue to review...

On August 19, 2021, FIF had a call with FINRA CAT and the SROs to discuss CAT reporting for options errors. During the call, FIF reviewed with FINRA CAT and the SROs feedback from FIF members on current industry practices for reporting options errors.

Back Office Committee. On August 17, 2021, representatives from DTCC presented on their Securities Financing Transaction (SFT) Clearing Service. The SFT service provides central clearing for equity lending and borrowing transactions. Data and Technology Committee. On August 18, 2021, John Ramsay from IEX reviewed changes to IEX’s retail program, which were approved recently by the SEC. IEX will be publishing a retail liquidity indicator on their prop feed and on the tape showing where there is trading interest for at least 100 shares willing to trade against retail orders at the...

Blockchain, distributed ledger technology (DLT) and asset tokenisation are expected to be increasingly leveraged by asset managers, according to a new survey from BNY Mellon. The study showed that blockchain and DLT to synchronise data and digital processes was cited as one of the top priorities for asset managers, as 84% of respondents stated they are planning to develop these solutions within the next three years to drive operational transformation. The anticipated uptake of blockchain technology is set to go hand-in-hand with plans to leverage asset tokenisation, with nearly...