WEBINAR: Cloud computing a 'transformational technology'

Cloud computing technology could transform the way foreign exchange is traded by breaking down barriers and creating new trading communities, according to participants in a webinar hosted by FX Week on December 6.

"People are starting to make communities within the cloud, and they are communicating and interacting with one another. The beauty of building or having a platform available is people can run their own businesses from the various perspectives of FX markets that exist. From all perspectives, the barriers to entry have dramatically decreased," says Harpal Sandhu, chief executive of cloud-based FX technology vendor Integral in Mountain View, California.

Using cloud technology means market participants do not have to pay the costs of distribution, and brokers have access to all the liquidity and customers they need without depending on a limited number of relationships, Sandhu argues.

"Cloud computing is evolving to customise software – I plug into a network and the network does everything for me. It's a vision of what people thought the web might become," adds Joseph Conlan, global head of FX sales at New York-based trading firm FCStone.

Webinar synopsis:
Cloud computing stands to democratise the foreign exchange industry by introducing a shared resource model, which advances the fundamental economics of trading these markets. Combined with a regulatory environment predicated on reducing systemic risk and increasing transparency, the game looks set to change for the incumbent providers of FX liquidity. This webinar is a forum to debate the implications of cloud-based trading technology on the microstructure of the FX market. Panellists discuss the application of cloud computing in foreign exchange, including new business opportunities, impact on liquidity, risk management and transparency, as well as meeting prudential requirements under forthcoming regulation.

Speakers
Moderator: Saima Farooqi, executive editor, FX Week
Joseph Conlan, global head of FX sales, FCSTONE
Javier Paz, senior analyst, AITE GROUP
Harpal Sandhu, chief executive officer, INTEGRAL