Reuters is to release its Data Access Control System (Dacs) as an open extension to firms for controlling the use of chargeable market data across the enterprise.
Open Dacs prevents costly data contract infringements by ensuring individuals only receive the data they are already permitted to use. It also gives enterprises control over the distribution of data with full reporting and audit facilities to help monitor it.
The move comes as financial institutions increasingly look to re-use market data supplied under license by stock exchanges and other sources both off-floor and within algorithmic trading engines supplied to buy-side clients.
Michael Parlapiano, Reuters global head of information management solutions, says: "Major financial enterprises can easily infringe data rights inadvertently if they do not have close control over how data is consumed within their organization. Global exchanges are increasingly keen to ensure that clients meet their data charges. Open Dacs offers complete control over all the data coming into an enterprise for the first time."
Colleen Dennis, head of market data audit at the London Stock Exchange, welcomes the initiative: "Data and contract management is increasingly demanding for our clients and we welcome Reuters Open Dacs as a means of assisting firms."
The LSE reported a £6.4 million exceptional settlement with Citigroup at the end of last year following an investigation into under-reported data usage at the global investment bank. The stock exchange auditing team found Citi had inadvertently infringed its licensing agreement by re-using data in algo trading applications and supplying delayed data to clients and third party Web sites without prior agreement.