Management of market and reference data is a crucial component for a successful and sustainable enterprise in the financial industry. Nagler & Company specializes in individualized market data systems built on Alveo.
Software solutions from Alveo offer a number of advantages for traders, processors, risk managers, and IT:
Alveo delivers a centralized “Golden Copy“ from consistent information on financial instruments, corporate actions and counterparties. With a unique method for data enrichment, normalization and consolidation, Alveo offers quality-assured and standardized reference data. The canonical data model is completely flexible and can be mapped to any instrument, data type, or computational model.
In the field of market data, determining the correct price through the proper application of business rules is crucial for assessing both risk and value. Alveo’s software solutions deliver quality-assured price data for diverse valuations, including
The market data infrastructure of the client required streamlining to cut costs and optimize available resources. The real-time market data supply was migrated from Reuters Selectfeed and Bloomberg BPipe-on-Demand (BPOD) to the new Bloomberg data feed service, Managed BPipe. No standard managed BPipe interface existed for Alveo, so Nagler & Company designed and implemented an adapter, and configured the existing processes and data streams to handle the new source.
see illustration
Design, Implementation, Testing and Operations
Our procedural strategy Business Driven Technology starts with business needs as the basis for technical design. Our team's combined business understanding and technical know-how enabled us to reconcile the functional requirements, infrastructure landscape and technical constraints of the Alveo and Managed BPipe systems.
The interface to managed BPipe builds a connection using the Bloomberg Java API. This connection is maintained throughout market database's uptime and subscribes to real-time data twice daily. To enhance reliability, there are two co-located interface instances that run simultaneously and execute a seamless failover in the event of problem on one side. In addition, all incoming data is saved for 24 hours to ensure that no ticks are lost in the event of connection problems with Alveo.
Market data provision was optimized through the implementation of the new interface. The concentration on a single data provider allowed for significant direct financial savings. Also, unification and simplification of the system's technology reduced operational risk and improved both stability and maintainability.
Setup and extension of a market and reference database system based on Alveo for IPV and Value at Risk calculations, including integration into the existing system and software environment.
Nagler & Company developed a multitude of components for the integration of various data sources and consumers. The complete software development cycle, from specification to implementation and tests until the final go-live and integration of new components into daily operations, were part of the responsibilities. Consolidation of input data from several internal and external sources, optimization of workflows and processes within the Alveo system, analysis and reporting of audit trail information and the setup of interfaces for data exchange with third party systems and departments like Front Office, Scenario Engine or R, were all part of the challenge. In addition, dedicated trainings for internal staff were performed by Nagler & Company to provide both basic and specialized knowledge required for operating the system.
All requirements were specified and implemented in short development cycles and in close coordination with the internal business and IT departments. Standard interfaces were used as much as possible in order to minimize the requirements for maintenance and operations. When business requirements demanded more flexible solutions which were not covered by the default functionality of the system, dedicated components were implemented and integrated into the system. For example, various third party systems like Calypso were provided with API modules which allowed a direct connection to Alveo, enabling it to perform direct queries from the Front Office system into the market database without the potential delays and additional overhead of a batch-based data delivery.
Close contact with all involved parties during the development period and specific and targeted training sessions ensured a shortened training period and a seamless integration of new components into the production environment.
In cases where standard Alveo functionality did not cover all business requirements, development of components was primarily done in Java and Perl languages, supplemented by Shell scripts and the Alveo-specific scripting language Formula Engine for integration into the existing system environment. Test and release cycles were standardized through the use of Maven. The use of existing systems and technologies was crucial for providing additional synergies and reduce additional efforts as much as possible.
Using an integrated and holistic approach based on technical and business expertise, an optimal solution for the setup of the market data infrastructure could be provided. The implementation ensures performance and stability while lowering efforts for maintenance and daily operations.
Setup, operation and extension of a central market and reference database, based on Alveo, incorporating multiple data vendors and downstream systems.
For more than ten years, Nagler & Company has been responsible for all market data maintenance activities, including:
One-stop full-service provider
The illustration shows the integrated architecture based on the Alveo market database, extended by in-house peripheral systems.
With the complete takeover of support and development of the system, Nagler & Company was able to guarantee dependable service and data quality for years. The one-stop full service solution enabled us to add value throughout the market data lifecycle, from business concept and technical design to implementation, daily operation, and support. We focus on customer usability, which we accomplish through fast reaction times, high availability and short implementation cycles.
