Google eTrading

With Google hiring the former global head of FX at Bloomberg you can sense the anticipation that this could be the point that Google steps up with a Bloomberg-challenging capital markets offering.

While there is plenty for the market data lovers to expect from this, I wonder where etrading functionality sits in the roadmap, and whether those plans are all d-i-y within Google or whether there are any exploratory conversations going on with guys like marketcetera about creation and distribution possibilities regarding getting that Google OMS going? I know that if I was pushing FPL, I’d be all over Google to ensure FIX is high on Google’s radar as the api of choice for orderflow, as the wave of adoption that would create would be enormous.

eTrading is king

No need to talk up your own book if you’re involved in eTrading, EFN summarises the recent Morgan Stanley and Oliver Wyman publication Outlook for Global Wholesale and Investment Banking as specifically very positive from the eTrading front:

Flow Monsters – As spreads narrow and margins tighten, MS and Oliver Wyman are predicting that so-called ‘flow monsters’ with electronic trading platforms, ‘scale, leading edge technology and outstanding risk management in key categories’ will prevail in equities and fixed income trading. In fixed income currencies and commodities (FICC) sales and trading think market leaders Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, JP Morgan, BofA Merrill Lynch, Deutsche and BarCap. In equities sales and trading think Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse, SocGen, Deutsche, JPMorgan, and Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

also specifically in

Electronic Trading We noted yesterday that anything related to electronic trading is hot (here). MS and Oliver Wyman confirm that the push to cut costs and build volume will ensure that electronic trading remains key in flow businesses for the foreseeable future. As a corollary, they also predict ‘down-skilling’ in other areas, such as flow sales.

and just to touch on the STP/processing side,

Post trade servicing Few people get rich from working in post trade servicing, but it’s definitely a growth area. Banks are predicted to invest heavily in post trade clearing and asset servicing capabilities this year. This is largely to prepare for changes to the OTC derivatives market, where up to 85% of trades are expected to move to centralised clearing systems in the next few years.