One of London’s oldest firms deploys new cutting edge tech

One of the oldest names in the financial markets has shown that it is moving with the times this week. ED&F Man which was founded in 1783 has partnered with Fintech Vela to create a low latency electronic execution platform for US equity and equity options for use by ED&F Man Capital Markets and its clients.

The new dealing platform has been made possible by the use of Vela’s multi-asset electronic trading technology including its DMA platform automated trading facilities and market-making front-end. Vela is a leading independent provider of data and execution and trading technology which can trace its roots back to 1997.

Vela offers users access to more than 250 trading venues across major asset classes and has offices across the USA, Europe and Asia.
Vela clients are drawn from the realms of brokerage, trading and market-making, exchanges and other investment firms. Alongside trading technology the company offers data gateways and feeds, risk analytics accessible via dedicated servers or cloud-based format.

ED&F Man has wasted no time and have their first live on the new platform already in the form of Chicago-based GalNet Asset Management who will be routing orders via the Vela system. Man hopes to attract further institutional client interest which it believes will be drawn to the API access and multi-asset nature of its new Metro platform.

The Metro Trdaing platform is one of Vela’s flagship products which it describes as a high-performance server-based system supporting automated, algorithmic and click trading strategies. Offering a complete solution for pricing, execution, and risk management.

Kevin Galassini, Co-Founder of GalNet Asset Management was quoted as saying that: “It is great to see this connectivity between Vela and ED&F Man Capital Markets” and that “As a long-time client of both Vela and ED&F Man Capital Markets, GalNet is delighted to be live on the Metro platform, extending our reach to Equities and Equity Options with this tailored trading solution for pricing, execution, and risk management.”

David Sklar, Head of Equity Clearing at ED&F Man Capital Markets, said that: “ED&F Man Capital Markets is focused on innovations and technology that make trading as efficient and effective as possible. Through partnerships such as this, we’re able to offer traders exposure to asset classes they may not otherwise be able to access. To this end, we are pleased to be collaborating with Vela to provide execution services for both US Equities and Equity Options.”

Perhaps it is possible for an old dog to learn new tricks in the financial markets after all.