Iress

IRESS Acquires QuantHouse to Up MSCI coverage from 52% to 75%

Iress, the leading Australian trading technology provider for the financial markets and wealth managers, has acquired market data provider QuantHouse from co-founder and CEO Pierre Feligioni, who will continue to lead the business.

The deal, which is subject to a two-year earnout proviso, will bring EUR 38.9 million (AUD 72.5 million) to the table as the API-based market data firm has grown much in value since its founding in 2005. The company currently operates with a focus on Europe, North America and Asia, and provides over 145 data feeds from exchanges and other data providers to more than 300 buy-side firms and investment banks.

Andrew Walsh
Andrew Walsh
Andrew Walsh, Chief Executive Officer at Iress, commented:“The provision of accurate, timely and cost-effective market data through our software and to a range of clients is an important part of Iress’ current and future business and our growth strategy. Importantly, the acquisition will expand Iress’ offering to clients globally. In particular, the acquisition will allow Iress to provide clients with real-time access to additional services, including international exchanges, with global MSCI coverage increasing from 52% to 75%. It will also meet client demand for increased channels for data beyond desktops.”
The EUR38.9 million (AUD 72.5 million) deal comes at a time when IRESS expects year-on-year segment profit growth between 6 to 11 percent on a constant currency basis, according to CEO Walsh at a group’s recent annual general meeting.
“We are experiencing sustained growth in wealth management, underpinned by existing and extended capability, including in data analytics software and superannuation. This is against a backdrop of increased regulatory scrutiny for clients and the spotlight of the royal commission.”
Among the many market data providers who have joined the QuantHouse API Ecosystem store is FastMatch which made available its consolidated central market data product FX Tape in March 2019, making pre- and post-trade benchmarking possible for the first time.
CMC Markets joined QuantHouse’s qh API Ecosystem in March 2018 to allow easier access to CMC execution services by hedge fund and brokerage clients in more than 22 financial data centers. CMC’s Prime Derivatives platform uses IRESS’s order management system since late 2018 in order to help better manage client pre-trade risk, positions, portfolios, margin, order routing, and workflow.
Last month, QuantHouse announced Gedik Investment, a Borsa Istanbul-listed non-bank brokerage house founded in 1991, deployed Horizon Software’s platform for futures market making, auto-hedging, and algorithmic execution. Horizon had joined the ecosystem in October 2017 and doubled down in 2018 by offering support for the cryptocurrency market.
Actant’s derivative trading solutions, including its algorithmic programming flexibility and control for proprietary trading firms, market makers, investment banks and hedge funds, were added to the qh API in August 2018.