Product Overview
Financial Technology Laboratories, Inc. offers a vendor-neutral fixed-income quote and order routing network known as FIRM (fixed income routing matrix). FIRM is a combined software connectivity suite and routing service based on the industry-standard Financial Information eXchange (FIX) protocol. FIRM acts as a FIX Hub for connecting broker-dealers, order management systems, and trading platforms together and facilitating quote and order routing between the participating systems. It also acts as a FIX Gateway for converting proprietary information and data feeds from other vendors into the FIX protocol.
FIRM is designed to simplify and enhance the bond dealer's ability to utilize electronic communication networks (ECN) for publication of their fixed income offerings and bids wanted. Although there are multiple platforms that can generate order flow for the fixed income products advertised by broker-dealers, they all have somewhat different intefaces and methods of operation. They all use FIX to communicate, but speak different dialects. FIRM translates these different FIX implementations and dialects used by different vendors to a common message format. This allows traders to centrally manage all of their bond quotes for publication in one place. Quote updates are published automatically and in real-time to the desired trading destinations and orders from these ECNs are routed back to the trader for processing.
Many trading desks do not have easy access to the technology resources they need to automate their fixed income trading and participate fully in the electronic bond markets. Fortunately, FIRM provides the software and service to interface with multiple trading platforms and deliver aggregated order flow from these systems back to the dealer over a single communication connection. FIRM is a unique combination of networking, software-based message routing, and client-side communication software that reduces communication costs, broadens distribution, increases order flow, and makes electronic trading through multiple platforms accessible to a wider range of bond dealers.
How does FIRM work as a FIX Hub?
A broker-dealer can connect either through a client-side software component supplied by FTLabs or directly from an in-house FIX engine if they have one. The FTLabs component is a customizable Microsoft Window-based application that installs as a Windows Service and directly reads a database or other data source for updates to send. When the trader makes changes to their offerings or bids wanted, these are read by the FIXmit application and transmitted as quote or request-for-quote messages to the FIRM server. The FIRM server accepts and distributes the quotes to the desired trading venues for publication using each system's specific requirements. In turn, when orders entered through one of the trading systems, they are sent back through the FIRM connection and routed to the trader's system for approval or processing.
How does FIRM work as a FIX Gateway?
In addition to expanding distribution and simplifying management of the ordering process, the FIRM network can also streamline the post-trade reporting of trades. Once an order has been received or approved by the trader, the completed trade can be routed back to the FIRM server. The FIRM server can convert the trade message to the proprietary communication protocol used by the dealer's clearing provider (for example, Pershing's UTF format) and routed to the clearing firm for processing. Acknowledgements and other alerts messages from the clearing provider are converted back to the FIX protocol and routed back to the trader for storage or processing locally.
FIRM is the Simple Solution for Starting - Or Expanding - Your Electronic Trading!
- Increased Distribution = Increased Profits. Firm allows a dealer to participate in trading with multiple ECNs without expensive, time consuming and complex technology integration projects. FTLabs has already done this work and you can profit from it.
- Simplified. Traders can keep their bond quotes updated on multiple trading platforms via a single connection to the FIRM network. Quote distribution and management can be handled centrally.
- Cost Effective. Participating dealers pay a low monthly fee to access to specific trading destinations and a small fixed message fee for each trade order routed.
- Improved Communication. Dealers also have the ability to receive quote feeds through FIRM from the ECNs (subject to ECN approval) for internal publication and distribution within their firm.
