Portware, an execution management system provider, has bought block trading venue operator Aritas Group’s Alpha Pro tool as part of a definitive agreement to acquire the firm’s technological and analytical assets.
Portware will use the acquisition, which is expected to close in Q2, to incorporate new analytical and commission optimisation tools into clients’ automated workflows, which it claims will minimise information leakage and enhance execution quality. In addition to Alpha Pro, Portware’s purchase also includes the Algorithmic Switching Engine but does not include the Aritas’ Block Board or broker-dealer business.
Aritas first launched Alpha Pro last summer as a tool to help buy-side traders find the optimal strategy for different types of trades. Alpha Pro uses real-time predictive analytics and market signals to recommend trading strategies and works in conjunction with the Algorithmic Switching Engine to choose appropriate algorithms over the course of the trade. The technology draws on 180 algo different strategies in total.
“This is a natural extension of our broker-neutral trading solutions, and allows us to partner with the entire broker community to maximise the benefit of these advanced analytics,” said Alfred Eskandar, CEO of Portware. “Our goal is to empower traders to analyse, communicate and execute their investment ideas in an automated way. This acquisition allows us to offer any firm, regardless of size, an extraordinary level of automation and choice in their trading workflows. Clients can direct order flow to multiple brokers, improve execution quality, and reduce trading costs while delivering consistent results across multiple strategies.”
“We’re excited to join forces with Portware to unlock the value we have created in our technology assets,” said Jay Biancamano, Aritas’ executive chairman. “Only an open, broker-neutral provider of trading solutions can fully deliver this value to our customers, and Portware is the global leader, with a proven ability to deliver technology-driven value.”
Aritas – formerly known as Pipeline – has recently refocused its business following an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, which found the firm was executing orders via an affiliated proprietary trading firm without informing clients.