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Creating a blockchain roadmap

Calypso Technology has been developing blockchain solutions for capital markets for the past two years, cooperating closely with leading industry technology infrastructure companies and end-users. Significant progress has already been made, and Calypso has an aggressive product roadmap to expand the solution further. In this interview, Mayank Shah, Managing Director, Strategy, Transformation and Alliances discusses

  • Editorial Team
  • June 25, 2018
  • 4 minutes

Calypso Technology has been developing blockchain solutions for capital markets for the past two years, cooperating closely with leading industry technology infrastructure companies and end-users. Significant progress has already been made, and Calypso has an aggressive product roadmap to expand the solution further. In this interview, Mayank Shah, Managing Director, Strategy, Transformation and Alliances discusses Calypso blockchain initiatives in more detail.

Can you explain where Calypso stands in terms of blockchain?

Calypso has embarked on a journey to become a leading blockchain technology provider for capital markets, working closely together with the leading blockchain platforms such as R3 and CLS/Hyperledger. We believe that blockchain will transform the way capital markets operate and we are an active participant in this transformation. Calypso has already successfully carried out a pilot for cross-asset matching using blockchain technology. We are now in the final phases of UAT, and we will soon go live with the solution.

That is interesting. Is the matching solution designed with any particular asset classes in mind?

For the pilot, the selected asset class was FX, and now we are expanding to other asset classes, to offer cross-asset matching. In our annual client conference in May 2018, we demonstrated OTC derivatives matching (including Interest Rate Swap) using blockchain, which was very well received by the audience.

Has the transformation to use blockchain been a difficult one?

It has not been difficult. In fact, there are certain fundamental strengths inherent in Calypso's system, which will allow us to move very quickly and leapfrog many of the other players in the field. These strengths include the fact that Calypso was designed to use real time events and services-based trade and other workflows from day one. Also, our migration to Cloud Microservices enables us to quickly deploy and extend real world use cases onto blockchain technology. So, from technology point-of-view, Calypso has an excellent and natural fit to the blockchain world.

You mentioned matching as an offering to your clients where you have already used blockchain technology. What are your ambitions and reasoning for developing other DLT-based offerings for capital markets?

We have a roadmap which is very aggressive. Within our existing client base of more than 200 financial institutions around the world, we are an acknowledged market leader in providing a top-notch collateral management solution within our trading platform. So, collateral management is a natural expansion area for us to start using blockchain. Given our strong track record in this area, we are in a unique position to proceed in a way that addresses some of the greatest challenges in collateral management to bring value to clients.

Calypso initially established its foothold in capital markets through superior straight-through processing and post-trade execution capabilities, so the settlements and payments are another logical area where we can expand the blockchain offering. Consider again that through our large client base using us in this area, we are in an excellent position to quickly identify an optimal fit for blockchain, whether it be for SSIs, netting, other settlement workflows, etc.

What general advice do you have for people designing and implementing blockchain solutions for capital markets?

There are obviously several issues which need to be dealt with intelligently, so that the product becomes viable. These include considerations about performance, governance, data security, as well as interoperability of blockchain platforms and financial institution's trading and processing systems, as well as interoperability between different blockchain platforms. We at Calypso have looked at these challenges in detail and selected blockchain technology partners who in our opinion address the issues in best way, particularly as they relate to capital markets.

Calypso Technology, Inc. Calypso Technology, Inc. is a cloud-enabled provider of cross-asset front-to-back solutions for financial markets with over 35,000 users in 60+ countries. Its award-winning software improves reliability, adaptability, and scalability across several verticals, including capital markets, investment management, central banking, clearing, treasury, liquidity, and collateral. Calypso is leveraging innovative cloud microservices and blockchain distributed ledger technology (DLT) based solutions to reduce trading costs and improve time to value.

“Calypso” is a registered trademark of Calypso Technology, Inc in the US, EU and other jurisdictions. Other parties’ trademarks or service marks are the property of their respective owners. www.calypso.com