Securities Industry News Clips from 2005

Singapore Exchange Outsourcing to Hewlett-Packard
By the end of this year, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) will no longer be in the technology infrastructure business. SGX is turning over its data center and its entire information technology infrastructure to Hewlett-Packard Co. As part of the five-year, $56 million contract, about 50 exchange employees will be transferred to HP, though the exact number hasn't been finalized yet, the exchange said. A governance team will be formed at SGX to ensure that service levels are met.
Securities Industry News News Feature (December 2005)
Singapore Exchange Outsourcing IT to HP
By the end of this year, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) will no longer be in the technology infrastructure business. SGX is turning over its data center and its entire information technology infrastructure to Hewlett-Packard Co. As part of the five-year, $56 million contract, about 50 exchange employees will be transferred to HP, though the exact number hasn't been finalized yet, the exchange said. A governance team will be formed at SGX to ensure that service levels are met.
Securities Industry News News (December 2005)
Investment Tools Vendor Eyes Emerging Markets
The lack of corporate transparency that slows the maturation of many emerging-market countries provides an opening for AlphaTrade, a Vancouver, Canada-based provider of real-time financial data and analytical tools for investors.
Securities Industry News News (December 2005)
China Needs More Than a Few Good Accountants
The frustratingly poor performance of China's financial markets has prompted calls for Western-style market regulation and infrastructure, not least the checks and balances that can be provided by a strong accounting component. Despite progress in drafting new accounting rules and standards, however, the country still lacks the capacity--and personnel--to enforce them, undermining both foreign and local investors' confidence in Chinese companies and, in turn, depressing stock prices.
Securities Industry News News feature (December 2005)
The Cost of Failure
There are times when a business-continuity disaster is completely unforeseen and cannot be planned for. And in other cases it is clear that the people in charge should have known better and planned specifically for such contingencies. That's a lesson that seems to have to be learned repeatedly in the world of stock exchanges--most recently in Tokyo.
Securities Industry News News (November 2005)
China Market Reforms Advance, More Privatizations in Pipeline
The biggest problem facing China's stock market today is the fact that two-thirds of all shares are locked up in government hands. "If two-thirds of the shares cannot be circulated, then there is no pressure on the management," said Thomas Liu, professor of finance at Shanghai's Jiao Tong University. "They're not afraid of being run out."
Securities Industry News News Feature (October 2005)
China Market Reforms Advance, More Privatizations in Pipeline
The biggest problem facing China's stock market today is the fact that two-thirds of all shares are locked up in government hands. "If two-thirds of the shares cannot be circulated, then there is no pressure on the management," said Thomas Liu, professor of finance at Shanghai's Jiao Tong University. "They're not afraid of being run out."
Securities Industry News News (October 2005)
Brokerage Beats Banks in Chinese Securitization Race
The securitization industry is in its infancy in China. There are plans afoot to securitize assets that would then be traded in an interbank exchange.
Securities Industry News News Feature (October 2005)
Kamakura Enters Risk Alliance With China's Xinhua
Seeking to fill a big regional void in market data, Honolulu-based risk systems specialist Kamakura Corp. has joined forces with China's Xinhua Finance data company to provide market and credit risk information to emerging markets in China and elsewhere in Asia.
Securities Industry News News Feature (October 2005)
Middle East's First International Exchange Opens
The Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) opened late last month, and now comes the test of fulfilling its hopes of attracting investor interest in the region, which could eventually encompass much of Africa, Turkey, Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent through telecommunications links.
Securities Industry News News Feature (October 2005)
Private Equity Giant Bets on Asia
Global private equity firm Carlyle Group is putting more than $1.6 billion of its assets under management into Asia. To help the process along, the firm is opening offices in Beijing, Mumbai and Sydney.
Securities Industry News News (October 2005)
Electronic Recordkeeping: Still a Compliance Minefield
Do you keep backups of your e-mails? If so, you could be in for a very nasty surprise.
Securities Industry News Feature (September 2005)
The Globe Has No Corners: As regulations converge, Asia opens up to foreign capital
South and North Korea are two extremes when it comes to Asian investments. In the south, foreigners are allowed to own 100 percent of a company's shares, and there are few limitations on foreign brokerages setting up shop or moving capital in or out of the country--an attractive proposition to global brokerages.
Securities Industry News Feature (September 2005)
China Brokers Move Offshore
Until last month, Chinese brokerages were forbidden to do business outside the mainland, even as World Trade Organization commitments by the Chinese government allowed foreign brokerages to set up shop inside of China through joint ventures and partnerships.
Securities Industry News News (August 2005)
Dashboard Partners Aim to Virtualize the Enterprise
Enterprise integrator Tibco Software of Palo Alto, Calif. is known for embedding its software into the very fabric of securities firms' networks. Most recently, this has taken the form of a new wave of applications for business process management--a software-driven analysis and design methodology for measuring and optimizing the performance of enterprise workflow.
Securities Industry News News (June 2005)
Database Empires Embrace Upstart Tactics
This month, Silicon Valley database empire Oracle acquired TimesTen, a young, nimble company that makes super-fast, memory-resident databases. Last month, rival Sybase, the leading maker of databases for Wall Street applications, released its own real-time risk analytics platform.
Securities Industry News News (June 2005)
Chicago-Amsterdam-Singapore Express
This month, Silicon Valley database empire Oracle acquired TimesTen, a young, nimble company that makes super-fast, memory-resident databases. Last month, rival Sybase, the leading maker of databases for Wall Street applications, released its own real-time risk analytics platform.
Securities Industry News News (June 2005)

Database Empires Embrace Insurgent Models
The online brokerage business just got a little more cutthroat in Japan. It's no longer enough to offer low commissions and convenient trading. By the end of the summer, customers will also be able to collect Yahoo "points" every time they make a trade.
Securities Industry News News Feature (June 2005)
Yahoo Japan Introduces Users to E-Trade
The online brokerage business just got a little more cutthroat in Japan. It's no longer enough to offer low commissions and convenient trading. By the end of the summer, customers will also be able to collect Yahoo "points" every time they make a trade.
Securities Industry News News Feature (June 2005)

Korean Unification
Three exchanges consolidate on a single platform for all asset classes.
Securities Industry News Feature (June 2005)
Novo Mercado Gives Bovespa New Lease on Life
Two years ago, Brazil's Novo Mercado ("new market") looked like a complete waste of time.
Securities Industry News Feature (June 2005)

China Financial Sector Grasps Linux Lifeline
In cooperation with a group of several other brokerages and with government support, an open-source push has begun to modernize the industry.
Securities Industry News Feature (June 2005)

Islamic Law and the Securities Markets
At the Forum for Developing Markets held by the World Federation of Exchanges last week in Beijing, Securities Industry News posed this question to the heads of exchanges in several Muslim countries.
Securities Industry News Feature (June 2005)
Dubai: Financial Free-Trade Zone on the Persian Gulf
This fall, Dubai--one of seven federated princedoms that make up the United Arab Emirates and already a major commercial center on the Persian Gulf--embarks on a bold experiment.
Securities Industry News Feature (June 2005)
Pirated Market Data Traced to Chinese Firms
It was inevitable. After pirated music CDs, pirated films on DVD, and pirated software--not to mention illegal brand-name knockoffs of consumer goods that sell on a scale rivaling the originals--comes pirated market data.
Securities Industry News Feature (May 2005)

China Announces Massive Privatization Plan
The Chinese government has formally announced a plan to begin selling off state-owned shares, which today make up two-thirds of all outstanding equities.
Securities Industry News News Feature (May 2005)

Ameritrade Backup Tapes Go Missing
This hasn't been a good year for personal data security. LexisNexis and ChoicePoint, two information brokerage companies, admitted that data files of more than 455,000 consumers were compromised. Bank of America lost backup tapes containing about 1.2 million credit card accounts.
Securities Industry News News Analysis (May 2005)

China Reform: Catalyst for Regional Bond Market
Now that China has embraced the World Trade Organization and is opening up to everything else that the capitalist world has to offer, it no longer presents an obstacle to the creation of pan-Asian financial mechanisms, such as a regional bond market.
Securities Industry News Feature (May 2005)