NASDAQ Dubai: an international gateway for investors in the Middle East through TCS BaNCS Depositories and clearing institutions across the world are challenged by the increasing complexity of clearing and settlement infrastructure. Changing regulations, faster settlement times, higher volumes, efficient risk management and greater transparency requirements are some of the challenges that necessitate that market infrastructure providers adopt technological solutions that reduce risks and improve efficiency. NASDAQ Dubai, the erstwhile Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX), was established with the intent to link investors in its own region and around the world. The exchange needed a robust solution that complied with international standards and would promote international confidence in the Dubai market. NASDAQ Dubai was seeking a sophisticated system that could be deployed in a short timeframe and an IT solutions partner with deep domain expertise, experience and a global presence. TCS was chosen as the preferred vendor as it offered the right mix of a comprehensive market infrastructure solution from TCS BaNCS and a long standing track record of IT deployment expertise across the globe. About the Client NASDAQ Dubai is the only international stock exchange in the Middle East. Established in 2005, the exchange is unique in its region because of setting and following standards comparable with leading international exchanges. NASDAQ Dubai also acts as a central securities depository and offers trading in the equities and derivatives market. Client NASDAQ Dubai Industry Capital Markets Offering Market Infrastructure “We have used market infrastructure solution from TCS BaNCS for all our post-trade processing since the launch of the DIFX market. We have been more than satisfied with both the depth of functionality and the level of service provided by TCS BaNCS. We are excited about the new V3 version as it includes improved derivatives functionality, and we are looking forward to receiving an upgrade to this version in early 2009. We look forward to continuing our strong partnership with TCS Financial Solutions.” Peter Fitzgerald, Chief Operating Officer, Nasdaq Dubai Business Challenge TCS’ Solution NASDAQ Dubai was set up as an international stock exchange when the prevailing trends were in favor of increased cross-border trading and a worldwide unification of financial systems. This exchange aimed to provide a platform from which global companies could tap into highly liquid investors in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states. Apart from shares, structured products and conventional bonds, NASDAQ Dubai also offers equity derivatives. As of now, the underlying stocks of the derivatives quoted on NASDAQ Dubai span across three exchanges viz., NASDAQ Dubai, Dubai Financial Market and Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange. TCS BaNCS was brought in to provide a system that would provide post-trading clearing services, including settlement, payments and delivery – all of which could be accessed by the members of the exchange through browser-based interfaces. Trading and clearing services also needed to be error-proof, robust, Straight-ThroughProcessing (STP) enabled and highly scalable. The exchange was also expected to create an environment that was free from the regulations and governance laws that existed in the two local exchanges in the UAE — the Abu Dhabi Securities Market and the Dubai Financial Market. Further, the exchange had to be world-class to be able to attract and cater to the kind of customers it was looking for. Given Nasdaq Dubai’s aims of becoming an international gateway for investors in the region, the challenge was to provide and execute cross-border, multi-currency trades followed by quick settlement and delivery. In addition, product portfolios needed to be upgraded continuously with new instruments to suit various customer profiles and the changing financial environment. The system would have to manage frequently changing international regulatory requirements as well. NASDAQ Dubai wanted to launch its services and be operational in as short a time as possible. TCS delivered this system in a record seven-month timeframe. The footprint covered included: Exchange clearing in a Central CounterParty (CCP) model Over-The-Counter (OTC) trade - creating, matching and settlements Risk management Real-time interface with systems for trades executed Automated reporting to members based on file transfers through serial file transfer protocol Integrated depository and registry At the core of the system was the market infrastructure solution from TCS BaNCS. As the solution matched up to eighty percent of the customer’s requirements and was easily upgradable, it was easily customized to meet the specific needs of NASDAQ Dubai. TCS domain experts provided the vital knowledge that bridged the business needs of the customer with the technology deployed. TCS experience in the domain helped make the enhancements in a way that allowed for reuse and further upgrades. Experience certainty True certainty of success comes from working with a partner you trust to provide the insight, support and expertise that will propel your business forward. Experiencing certainty with TCS means you can count on results, partnership and leadership. Going forward, the solution was enhanced to handle the derivative market needs of NASDAQ Dubai and implemented without effecting any changes to the existing functions of the exchange, thereby, minimizing the regression testing efforts. The completely automated and STP-enabled solution helped the customer reduce time and cost of operations. The solution provides for standard and world-class interfaces for the exchange. Further, its exemplary interfacing capabilities enabled quick integration with the changed trading platform in less than five months Apart from the trading system, the solution interfaces with SWIFT, provides data to the members of the exchange to facilitate automation at their ends, supports a standard SPAN interface for the derivatives market, and crucially interfaces with many other peripheral applications within the exchange. Results TCS provided a completely automated solution in a record seven-month timeframe in 2005, and followed it up with continuous value and agility, delivering the following benefits to NASDAQ Dubai: The entire functionality on clearing, settlement and depository operations A robust derivative markets functionality complying with international standards and cost-effective settlement methods A single solution supporting various asset classes in an integrated model STP into each business process, reducing the time and cost of operations Improved flexibility and scalability Quick customization and implementation cycle helping NASDAQ Dubai become operational and introduce new markets in a short timeframe, thereby, crediting TCS with a consistent track record for timely and quick delivery Regular upgrade capabilities enable NASDAQ Dubai reap the benefits of evolving along with the product thus leveraging new capabilities for introducing new solutions, bringing about improved user workflows, updated technology, and a completely agile STP for all transactions About TCS BaNCS The product suite for banking, capital markets and insurance enables business transformation in financial services. Increasing operational efficiency and helping financial institutions stay agile, our solutions deliver a competitive edge with unmatched certainty. We aspire to be better than established benchmarks, which is why we have embedded an Alpha (“ ”), representing superior returns delivered to our customers, consciously and prominently within our brand. The plug and play, component-based product suite consistently turns in impressive benchmark results, with a fine-tuned, highly scalable technology architecture that supports financial institutions with the highest capacities for transaction volumes, peak transactions per second, and transaction history size. With such a track record, it is only natural that the TCSBaNCS product suite can help financial institutions of any size gain a distinct, competitive edge. For more information, visit: www.tcs.com/bancs Contact To know more about us, contact tcs.bancs@tcs.com Subscribe to TCS Case Studies TCS.com RSS: http://www.tcs.com/rss_feeds/Pages/feed.aspx?f=c Feedburner: http://feeds2.feedburner.com/tcscasestudies About Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that delivers real results to global business, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT and IT-enabled infrastructure, engineering and assurance services. This is delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery ModelTM, recognized as the benchmark of excellence in software development. A part of the Tata Group, India’s largest industrial conglomerate, TCS has a global footprint and is listed on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange in India. 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