BlackRock Upgrades its Aladdin platform with Cassini integration
Blackrock, one of the leading asset management companies, has tied up with Cassini Systems to integrate its pre and post-trade margin and collateral analytics into the Aladdin platform.
With this integration, the clients of both the companies would be better able to understand their margin requirements and have full control over them. The platform is used by a range of asset managers, institutional clients, and high net worth investors and for them, the details of their margin requirements across the platform for both pre and post-trade analysis and research is key.
“We are excited to partner with Cassini to help clients more efficiently manage their margin by leveraging analytics at multiple points during the derivatives lifecycle,” said Sudhir Nair, Head of the Aladdin Business at BlackRock. “The combination of the Aladdin platform’s derivatives capabilities with Cassini’s margin analytics will enable our clients to best utilize their derivatives and collateral operating model on Aladdin.”
This partnership is also expected to help the clients with collateral optimisation as this would enhance the capabilities of both the companies to provide the clients with real time information regarding their margin and collateral. Cassini Systems was started in 2014 and its focus has been to provide analysis into derivatives margin requirements and monitoring throughout the life cycle of a trade. It not only calculates the margin that is needed, but it also tracks the drivers for the changes in margin and all this information is transparent for its clients to monitor as well so that they can maximize their margin efficiency.
“At Cassini, we’re delighted that Aladdin chose our technology for this integrated offering. Mutual clients, including BlackRock itself, will now be able to leverage all of Cassini’s front-to-back margin and collateral analytics and optimization tools, natively within Aladdin. The ability to optimize and manage margin thresholds, as well as carry costs, at pre-trade time and execute post-trade margin and collateral optimization natively in the same platform represents a new step forward in the industry,” said Liam Huxley, CEO of Cassini Systems.
Blackrock had recently opened up its platform to Bitcoin investments by the launch of 2 new funds and with the crypto industry continuing to remain volatile, it is imperative that the clients have a wholesome and transparent view of their margin and collateral usage when the risk is high. This partnership is expected to yield results in this regard across the Aladdin platform.