What started off as a niche trend, whereby start-up fund managers would pick more suite-based technology solutions because they lacked the capital, or manpower, to operate multiple systems, has widened out in recent times.  According to Eric Bernstein (pictured), President of Broadridge Investment Management Solutions: ”What we observe is that now mid-sized and larger hedge funds are also going best-of-suite instead of best-of-breed, for similar manpower and cost reasons. They are looking more closely at the cost of maintaining multiple systems because their margins are getting squeezed.”  The logic is that if they can get multiple functions from a single

By Robin Bedford (pictured), Opus Fund Services – As the rate of change in the fund administration industry continues to increase, the ability to remain nimble becomes of critical importance. In a period of active industry consolidation, failure to remain `relevant’ results in being absorbed into a stronger more dynamic competitor.  Opus was born at the start of the global financial crisis and after a decade of significant investment, we have transformed the fund administration world. Hedge funds and their investors have been a major beneficiary of these changes, with increasingly sophisticated services delivered at a fraction of the historical

Hedge fund managers are leaning on their technology partners more than ever as they seek to automate the investment management lifecycle, front through back. With regulation such as MiFID II just around the corner (it comes into effect 3 January 2018), European firms in particular will need to address gaps in their IT infrastructure to ensure they adjust to the regulation as seamlessly as possible. As we reveal below, robotics and AI could solve many of the complexities of managing data in this complex regulatory environment.  This March, Eze Software released a new Trade Importer feature for Eze OMS, to

Confluence, one of the investment management industry’s leading reporting, data management and analytics companies, delivers technology as a solution to enhance the operational efficiency of its clients. The platform supports a vast array of clients globally running mutual funds, ETFs, alternative investments, institutional portfolios and UCITS funds, as well as eight of the 10 largest global fund administrators.  With regulation becoming such a burden on investment managers, technology has needed to up its game and deliver automation where possible. In that regard, Confluence is well placed. Its Unity NXT Regulatory Reporting platform handles clients’ post-trade reporting requirements in a single

By Michael O’Brien (pictured), Nasdaq – Ask buy side firms about the areas where they are most vulnerable to legal action, and they will likely put insider trading on the list. In the last few years, regulators around the world have shown their willingness to investigate and prosecute insider trading cases, and levy severe fines and penalties. Importantly, the firms involved have suffered significant damage to their reputation. To successfully prosecute an insider trading case, regulators generally need to prove that the person was in possession of the information, and that the person then acted on it. Each region takes

With so much change happening in the funds industry, it is imperative that technologists keep pace to help hedge funds optimise operations. In that regard, Eze Software has been busy developing new functionality across the Eze Investment Suite, with MiFID II as a big focus.  In Q1, Eze Software partnered with OTAS Analytics to integrate advanced market analytics capabilities into its execution management system (EMS) blotter to support MiFID firms seeking to meet best execution requirements under MiFID II. It also increased access to liquidity sources from the EMS and added BIDS and POSIT crossing networks to its suite of

Data re-use is likely going to become a critical feature of the industry, moving forward. Not only will fund managers want to be able to access data in a consistent fashion, they will also want to make sure it is accurate across different reports as regulators pay ever closer attention.  Rather than spend numerous man hours organising data to complete mundane tasks, the funds industry stands on the cusp of an exciting new era; one that will see increased use of machine learning and AI technology taking over such tasks, freeing up managers to hone investment strategies, and build investment