Tech briefs

CBA gets Fenics

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) is using Fenics from the GFI Group for global FX options pricing. "FX risk management is a core activity, our clients expect fast and accurate pricing, with specialist risk management products and value-added advice," said Peter Coad, head of trading and product management at CBA in Sydney. "Identifying a risk management and pricing environment was critical to maintaining a leading market position." The Fenics deal is the latest in a series of technology announcements from CBA, including the purchase of the Kamakura Risk Manager suite and SunGard/Front’s eGlobalTrader, for FX deal capture.

SwapsWire adds another broker

Inter-dealer broker Tullett went live last week on SwapsWire, an electronic service for confirming swaps deals.

This will bring straight-through processing to the broker’s interest rate derivatives clients by removing the time-consuming manual trade reconciliation process, said Mark Perkins, Tullett’s president of North America. "Transferring information immediately after the trade has been completed will reduce processing costs and opportunities for operational errors."

SwapsWire handles interest rate swaps in eight currencies: euro, sterling, yen, dollar, Swiss franc, Norwegian krone, Swedish krona and Danish krone.

ANB takes Opics

Arab National Bank has installed the Misys Wholesale Banking Systems’ Opics front-to-back office treasury management system in Riyadh and London. The bank plans to use the system to support a wider range of treasury products, including those developed for the Islamic market.

John Eldredge, Arab National Bank’s general manager and head of treasury, said the system had enabled the bank to put all treasury products on the same platform for risk management.

"The fact that Opics was conceptually developed by treasury market professionals and not just IT people is very important too," said Eldredge in explaining the bank’s choice of vendor.