For firms, a consolidated tape for equities and ETFs isn’t just about access to data; it’s about lowering complexity, cutting costs, and freeing teams to innovate, develop new products, and build stronger market infrastructure, writes David Taylor, chief executive, Exegy.
Europe has never had a truly unified view of equity trading. The proposed consolidated tape for EU equities and ETFs will change that, bringing trades and prices together in a single, reliable and regulated source with attractive prices thanks to a specific business model. For firms, this isn’t just about access to data; it’s about lowering complexity, cutting costs, and freeing teams to innovate, develop new products, and build stronger market infrastructure.
By learning from the experiences of the US and Canada, Europe has a chance to do it right from the start: to create a system that’s not only robust today but also adaptable for the markets of tomorrow. With modern technologies, like FPGAs, handling high-volume and high-speed data efficiently, the tape becomes more than a feed – it lays the foundation for a capital market ecosystem that’s ready for growth, innovation, and resilience.
Mining insights: Learning from the North American experience
North America shows what’s possible when you get it right. Consolidated tapes in the US and Canada report quotes and trades from exchanges, alternative trading venues, and over-the-counter (OTC) transactions, giving investors and firms a complete picture of market activity. A European tape could do the same, initially providing a unified real-time view of all trades and the best bid and ask prices, like the U.S. NBBO, improving transparency and enabling better-informed decisions.
The choices Europe makes – what data is included, how it’s distributed, and the underlying architecture – will determine whether the tape works reliably for real-time trading and supports non-real-time analysis. Done well, it can enable the rapid introduction of new products that boost liquidity, competition, and efficiency.
A platform for smarter decisions
A consolidated tape is more than a data feed, it’s a foundation for smarter trading and better analytics. By providing a consistent view of activity across exchanges, MTFs, and other venues, firms can build tools, strategies, and analytics with confidence.
The tape supports real-time and historical analysis, speeding up algorithmic models, risk monitoring, and compliance workflows. For smaller firms and new entrants, it levels the playing field, removing the need for costly infrastructure to normalise multiple feeds and making sophisticated strategies more accessible.
Centralised, authoritative data also encourages healthy competition. Firms can benchmark performance, spot liquidity opportunities, and innovate more efficiently. Over time, this consistency helps the entire ecosystem grow, paving the way for advanced products, better benchmarking, and greater transparency.
Building reliable, efficient infrastructure
A tape does more than consolidate data – it strengthens market infrastructure. Even firms that rely on direct feeds often use consolidated tapes to ensure robust access during congestion or outages and to validate their data. Europe can follow a similar path, creating a reference point that works for both real-time trading and broader market analysis.
FPGAs and other purpose-built hardware make this possible without bloating power use or data centre space. Firms can plan for extra capacity while keeping performance consistent, even during volatile periods. The combination of high-quality data and efficient hardware would give the European Union a tape that’s built to last and ready to support future innovation.
A foundation that lasts
Launching a European tape now is a rare chance to design something that truly works for everyone, from large institutions to smaller participants. By building it with accurate data, predictable performance, and extra capacity, the tape can reliably serve as both a primary feed and a benchmark for validation and resiliency.
Data vendors will play a key role in enabling the rapid adoption of a new European consolidated tape. Leveraging their lessons from supporting the consolidated tapes in North America, they can integrate the tape into their platforms efficiently and deliver new European data reliably, quickly, and cost-effectively. For their clients, it will serve multiple purposes: a source for investment decisions and execution, a tool for benchmarking direct feeds, and a fallback during outages.
A strategic step forward for European markets
The European consolidated tape isn’t just another market data feed – it’s a rare opportunity to rethink infrastructure, spark innovation, and make the market more efficient. By applying lessons from North America and leveraging high-performance technologies, Europe can build a system that’s reliable, scalable, and future-ready.
The benefits go far beyond data. Firms will be able to develop products faster, execute strategies with confidence, and operate in a market that’s more transparent and competitive. In short, the tape has the potential to transform the European capital markets into an ecosystem where innovation, efficiency, and growth go hand in hand.