Fintech, Finance, Technology, Banking Highlights – 30 April 2018
ACA Compliance acquires Cordium
ACA Compliance Group announced that it will acquire Cordium, a provider of governance, risk and compliance (GRC) services. The transaction is expected to close this summer, subject to regulatory approvals. The financial terms of the transaction will not be disclosed.
The complementary strengths of both firms will ensure that clients will have access to the highest caliber regulatory consultancy services and technology – and will serve as the springboard for further product innovation and global expansion. The acquisition also will expand ACA’s services in Europe to include Cordium’s regulatory hosting platform, Mirabella, and a post-Brexit EU office.
Robert L. Stype, CEO of ACA Compliance Group, said: “Cordium’s expertise, technology strengths and shared culture will greatly expand how we service and deliver our solutions to clients. By blending the delivery of innovative technology, depth of knowledge, and exceptional client service, we can help our clients further enhance their approach to GRC. As two leaders in the space, working as one will allow us to innovate faster and deliver more value to clients.”
Doug Morgan, Group CEO of Cordium, said: “With the existing strengths and capabilities of Cordium and ACA, the market can expect an unprecedented level of GRC support, built by integrating the resources, expertise and technology of both companies. GRC has never been higher on the agenda of the financial services industry, especially given the current pace of technology innovation. Through this partnership, we will be able to provide guidance and efficiencies to firms of all profiles and strategies.”
FactSet and Quantopian to launch data analysis platform
FactSet, a global provider of integrated financial information, analytical applications, and industry-leading services, and Quantopian, a crowd-sourced asset manager and creator of the open-source quantitative finance platform, today announced a new strategic relationship and a plan to launch a pioneering data analysis solution called Quantopian Enterprise that allows quantitative financial analysts to research and test their investment strategies faster and more effectively.
Quantopian Enterprise combines Quantopian’s industry-leading technology and data from the Open:FactSet Marketplace, allowing clients to simulate how investment algorithms will perform in the real world. Investment professionals will have immediate access to a ready-built research and testing environment, reducing the ramp-up time experienced with traditional platforms. They will also gain access to the financial data, computing resources, and flexible tools they need to create and improve their investment strategies.
“New data sources are growing rapidly, but the tools needed to capitalize on them are not coming to market at the same pace,” said Rich Newman, SVP and Global Head of Content and Technology Solutions, FactSet. “Our work with Quantopian will give clients a powerful platform that addresses the need for better quantitative resources. Access to data alone is simply not enough.”
STS and Worldpay join forces
STS, a payments acceptance software specialist, and Worldpay, a leader in global payments have today announced a new partnership that will deliver increased choice and capabilities for retailers, hospitality providers, travel merchants and service organisations looking to integrate payments at the point of sale.
As part of this agreement, the STS payment application that separates payments processing logic from the Electronic Point Of Sale (EPOS), will be integrated to Worldpay’s global acquiring platform. Additionally, a new transaction message decryption capability will be developed by STS, thus helping merchants migrate to more secure transaction-processing technology.
The focus of this agreement will be on the airline, rail, hospitality and transportation sectors where specific payments capabilities will cater for needs such as on-board sales, offline PIN verification, message decryption and multi-merchant infrastructure. European and Asian opportunities are currently being progressed as the new combined solution has global applicability.
With EPOS costs continually changing, an increasing number of businesses are looking to implement integrated systems at the point of sale thereby improving customer service, simplifying back office administration, and reducing shrinkage by doing so.
