Ediphy, the fixed income technology provider, together with a roster of industry-leading firms, today announces the launch of fairCT, a collaborative consolidated tape initiative designed to enhance transparency, liquidity and participation in UK fixed income markets.
Co-ordinated by Ediphy, fairCT brings together a diverse group of companies committed to delivering the best possible consolidated tape for the benefit of all industry stakeholders. Operating under the terms set out by the FCA, the consolidated tape provider will be an industry utility, built with an ‘at reasonable cost’ philosophy.
Participants include well-recognised industry names such as Cboe Global Markets, FactSet, Google Cloud, Norges Bank Investment Management, TP ICAP and UBS. The initiative remains open to engaging with others who, like those above, can meaningfully contribute to the establishment of a consolidated tape provider.
Key Highlights:
- Industry Collaboration: fairCT represents the full spectrum of the financial industry, ensuring a comprehensive and unified approach to market data consolidation.
- Timely and Accurate Data: The consolidated tape will serve as the official record of trades, bridging the gap between premium proprietary data products and free, non-aggregated, delayed data.
- Lower Cost of Data Access: fairCT addresses the FCA’s priority to lower the costs of accessing trading data and market participation.
Bond trading in the UK is currently fragmented, with liquidity spread across numerous trading venues and various lit and dark trading protocols. Despite significant regulatory improvements, the industry still faces challenges in providing timely and accurate information to investors. fairCT shares the FCA’s commitment to enhancing market integrity and Consumer Duty and addresses these challenges by offering a consolidated tape that aligns with the spirit of the UK regulatory framework.
Chris Murphy, CEO of Ediphy a respected industry expert and early advocate in consolidated tape matters, commented:
“Our approach is fundamentally different from other contenders. First, we aim to return any economic value generated by the consolidated tape provider over its costs and reasonable returns to the users of the tape. Second, we have built this initiative as a collaboration between multiple participants representing all stakeholder groups.
No other potential tape provider brings this diversity of experience nor delivers as fully on the alignment of product and customer needs, as proposed under the FCA Consumer Duty commitment.”
