DTCC’s Institutional Trade Processing (ITP) is helping clients achieve a no-touch processing workflow by making vast improvements to its services on the way to creating one integrated platform for all post-trade activity.
DTCC Connection recently met with Moira Kiernan, DTCC Director, ALERT Product Management, to discuss Global Custodian Web (GC Web) – a web-based version of ALERT’s Global Custodian Direct (GCD) workflow.
What is the new ALERT® Global Custodian Web functionality and why is it important to the industry?
MK: GC Web is a new service that allows smaller custodians to take part in the custodian managed Standing Settlement Instruction (SSI) model provided through ALERT by maintaining SSI data directly on a web-based platform.
Since it is web-based, GC Web does not require the direct integration and robust technology build that GCD does. This allows smaller custodians and their clients to benefit from all the efficiencies of the ALERT platform that wasn’t feasible with GCD.
Why was GC Web created?
MK: One of our main goals is for ALERT® to achieve 100% SSI coverage in all markets and asset classes, and to ultimately have that data maintained by source providers like custodians and prime brokers. SSIs are a primary cause of trade fails and having source providers maintain SSI data within ALERT has proven to decrease risks from industry initiatives such as CSDR and T+1.
ALERT’s GCD workflow is the gold standard for custodians to maintain data on behalf of their underlying clients and allows for utilization of all the efficiencies provided by the ALERT platform, like data automation and centralization. However, because of the time and resources needed to build to this workflow, it wasn’t as practical for smaller firms. With that in mind, we introduced GC Web to allow smaller custodians, as well as investment managers and brokers, to benefit from the efficiencies gained from the use of the ALERT platform without the lift of direct integration.
Today, nine global custodians are using GCD, with two more in the process of adopting the technology. This covers 90% of asset coverage within ALERT. To facilitate full coverage, we also offer a variety of vehicles for data providers to utilize the ALERT workflow, including Regional Custodian/Trust Bank model, and ALERT for Primes model as well as several managed services.
What are the benefits of ALERT Global Custodian Web?
MK: GC Web provides the same benefits of GCD, including access to the world’s largest community of SSI database subscribers, automated enrichment of SSI and account information, real-time data validation against the latest industry standards, and increased data quality through multiple levels of authorization.
Additionally, ALERT can be used to enrich trades on DTCC’s CTM, the industry standard for central trade matching. Further benefits include real time enrichment, golden source data, and access to more than11 million SSIs, 1,800 live buy-side firms and 1,200 broker dealers.
To learn more about Global Custodian Web, please contact us.