Press

Contineo was established in 2015, using the technology of AG Delta (a co-investor) to electronically connect investment banks, which manufacture structured products, with the private banks that distribute said products to wealthy Asian clients.

For example, a private bank’s relationship manager (RM) might want to pitch a trading idea to a wealthy client. She can set out parameters on the Continue platform and investment banks can automatically respond with prices; these prices aren’t advertized, but the system will offer up the most competitive bids, for the RM or her client to accept or reject. Transactions of vanilla products can be packaged and sold in minutes.

“There’s no digital solution [in Europe] to streamline the business”

Contineo has been a hit thanks to its speed, its algorithms to immediately construct and price products, and its use of a common protocol (FIX, for execution) that allows multiple players to interact. The platform has allowed participating banks to cut headcount, and made it simple for both issuers and distributors to do business amid a marketplace with many counterparties.

In Asia, Contineo competes against Singapore-based FinIQ Consulting, a standalone vendor, and as a result of these various solutions, bilateral issuer-to-distributor deals for structured products are now limited to esoteric situations. The two players each have close to half the market, reckon bankers. (FinIQ did not respond to requests for comment.)

And the market is big: Munoz says the Hong Kong and Singapore market for structured products is $180 billion a year in notional contracts. He says the average transaction size on the network is $500,000, with the underlying mostly equity flow products.

Europe is a smaller market, but still attractive, at around $120 billion, Munoz says. But it throws up the same problem that Asian banks previously faced: “There’s no digital solution to streamline the business,” he told DigFin.

Hence the users have been requesting the consortium extend its services. But it’s not an apples-to-apples situation.

Asia vs. Europe

Asia’s industry involves many family offices and wealthy individuals who demand customized, bespoke products for short-term trades. Accumulators, a type of equity forward that is popular with Asian customers, can hit targets and pay out within a week. And rich Asians like to spread their trade among multiple private banks, adding to complexity of price discovery.

“Now it just takes minutes to price, quote it and trade”

Ultimately, the cost of product design and execution plus the market’s big size and confusing variety of bilateral relationships incentivized banks to invest in any multi-issuer platform, says Lemuel Lee, head of equities for Asia at JPMorgan’s private bank, in Hong Kong.

“In the past, it would take an hour, if everyone focused on it,” he said. “Now it just takes minutes to price, quote it and trade.”

But these conditions are not replicated in Europe. Structured products are designed to last three to five years. The sizes are smaller. Payout structures, and therefore compliance rules, differ. And there’s no need for banks to race to close a price before the day is out.

The competitive landscape is also more mixed, with vendors such as ITG’s RFQ-Hub, LeonTeq and Vontobel’s platform (called derinet) already serving different niches.

Munoz says private banks in Europe have expressed a desire to see Contineo operate there. “It’s not a revenue drive by us,” he said.

Bankers in Asia see the benefits their counterparts in Europe would receive, although they recognize the need may be less acute.

“It will come over time,” says Frederic Dussaux, co-head of electonic market-making and commerce at BNP Paribas’s global markets division, in Hong Kong. “Private banks [in Europe] should demand it in order to automate operations and deliver execution capabilities to their RMs.”

Organic build

But what happens in Asia often stays in Asia: for these global financial institutions, regional executives follow their own market needs, and their own incentives. And service providers like Contineo can’t leverage opinions in Asia to sway those in Europe without risking annoying its clients.

So for Contineo, the European business has to be established organically. As a consortium fintech, Contineo needs to make sure enough of its members will support the move. Some investment banks are happy with the status quo in Europe, where the environment is already competitive, and may not welcome a system that makes pricing more transparent.

“It would be a challenge if clients felt like we weren’t giving them a choice,” Munoz said. “We want them to see the long-term benefits.”

To some degree, a slower pace is natural to a consortium business model. A fintech servicing multiple financial institutions across jurisdictions faces high costs, and Munoz says it took Contineo six months before members started using it, and while longer before they began to pay.

To that end, Munoz believes some of the more enthusiastic private banks will join the European platform by the end of this year, but it may take longer to activate investment banks. But he is betting the allure of transparency, speed, efficiency and client demand will eventually win enough of them over.

http://www.digitalfinancemedia.com/blog/2017/05/24/contineo/

ABOUT CONTINEO
Contineo is the first industry supported open messaging network and community to access issuers of structured products. From best price discovery to order fulfilment, our subscribers benefit from unique data analytics through a comprehensive global network.
Contineo is proud to count the world’s leading private and investment banks as subscribers. To learn more and see a demo please visit www.contineo.link or contact info@contineo.com.hk.

Contineo, the industry-backed messaging network for equity- linked structured products, has launched I/O, a data analytics tool that collates and analyzes data on its existing network to provide users with insights into market activity.

I/O is a set of products for Contineo subscribers that includes proprietary analysis and anonymous market data about structured products activity over the vendor’s network.

These include firm-wide and market-wide executive dashboards that provide insight into users’ performance at an individual, team and firm level, as well as their performance relative to other firms.

Subscribers to Contineo’s network have access to basic reports, while more comprehensive enterprise reports and an API datafeed are available for an additional fee. By analyzing activity, users will be able to adjust their strategies─for example, to achieve greater insight into client relationships, or to improve pricing and market depth in response to changes in activity.

Subscribers will have access to charts and rankings on request for quote (RFQs) and request for order (RFO) activity, and aggregated views on products that are trending and selling in the market. The data is segregated by individual bank, and any potentially identifying information is removed for the market view.

Contineo’s I/O has been generating reports for subscribers since September 2016, and will launch the second version of the platform later this year. A third version is already in development, and will offer additional forward-looking features. For example, if a structured product will expire soon, I/O will provide options that the client can take, such as to either roll the product over or hold it to expiry.

The tool also generates compliance and regulatory reports, and officials say it will appeal to a range of financial institutions, from private banks and investment banks to asset managers, hedge funds, and financial technology providers serving the structured products industry, and will serve a range of applications as market participants seek to apply the never-before available information to a previously opaque market.

“Private banks have never had a trusted source for market intelligence in their business and this is key and it’s proving to be a useful tool for them, particularly on the buy side. The network is a great utility but the data helps them grow their business,” says Contineo chief executive Mark Munoz. “We are helping the buy side in terms of running their operations. It gives them more insight into their business, usage and user activity. For the sell-side, they are more interested in the market impact report, and I/O also allows them to see why they’ve missed a trade.”

Contineo has seven private banks subscribed to its network, and has seen a 20 percent increase in traffic on the network so far in January 2017 alone, officials say.

https://www.waterstechnology.com/inside-market-data/news/2480994/contineo-launches-data-analytics-for-structured-products-community

ABOUT CONTINEO

Contineo is the first industry supported, open messaging network for private banks and wealth management firms to access issuers of structured products. Together we are a community with a shared vision and purpose.

We believe that technology should be intuitive, easy to access, and available to all participants. This means creating an open messaging standard in concert with the buy-side and sell-side, and enabling access to all parties, including other certified technology vendors.

This mission is shared by our current subscribers, who recognise the importance of an open, efficient and transparent network.

http://structuredretailproducts.com/news-story/23067/contineo-rolls-out-new-data-service-for-structured-products

ABOUT CONTINEO
Contineo is the first industry supported open messaging network and community to access issuers of structured products. From best price discovery to order fulfilment, our subscribers benefit from unique data analytics through a comprehensive global network.
Contineo is proud to count the world’s leading private and investment banks as subscribers. To learn more and see a demo please visit www.contineo.link or contact info@contineo.com.hk.

“The launch of I/O represents a sizeable milestone in the evolution of the structured products space, said Contineo CEO Mark Munoz. “The data analytics and insights have never been available before and we think the applications will be really varied as market participants seek to understand this previously opaque part of the financial products landscape.”

I/O is a standalone set of products that includes proprietary analysis for Contineo subscribers, and anonymized market data. Proprietary analyses include executive dashboards at individual bank and whole-of-market level, which inform subscribers about internal performance at individual, team and firm level, as well as performance relative to other firms. The system also generates specific reports on request.

“Data confidentiality is essential for us,” Munoz highlighted. “We designed I/O so each bank’s data is protected, segregated, securely stored and remains private, and the market view is entirely anonymised.”

I/O also offers a data feed for service integration and document generation, bringing efficiencies to these processes for the first time. This offering allows for banks’ operations teams to work with the data sets directly to suit their specific internal needs. Both proprietary and market overview data can be delivered directly into user’s internal systems.

“I/O is an important step for Contineo,” said Munoz. “Having built the network and seen the growth in our volume, our next step was delivering the analytics this industry so desperately needs.”

http://www.mondovisione.com/media-and-resources/news/new-data-service-brings-transparency-to-structured-products-for-the-first-time/

ABOUT CONTINEO
Contineo is the first industry supported open messaging network and community to access issuers of structured products. From best price discovery to order fulfilment, our subscribers benefit from unique data analytics through a comprehensive global network.
Contineo is proud to count the world’s leading private and investment banks as subscribers. To learn more and see a demo please visit www.contineo.link or contact info@contineo.com.hk.

Contineo launches data products for the structured product market.

Contineo has launched I/O, a suite of data products for equity-linked structured products.

“The launch of I/O represents a sizeable milestone in the evolution of the structured products space, said Contineo CEO Mark Munoz. “The data analytics and insights have never been available before and we think the applications will be really varied as market participants seek to understand this previously opaque part of the financial products landscape.”

I/O is a standalone set of products that includes proprietary analysis for Contineo subscribers, and anonymized market data. Proprietary analyses include executive dashboards at individual bank and whole-of-market level, which inform subscribers about internal performance at individual, team and firm level, as well as performance relative to other firms. The system also generates specific reports on request.

I/O also offers a data feed for service integration and document generation enabling banks to work with the data sets directly to suit their specific internal needs. Both proprietary and market overview data can be delivered directly into user’s internal systems.

http://www.automatedtrader.net/news/at/156988/contineo-announces-new-data-product–io

ABOUT CONTINEO
Contineo is the first industry supported open messaging network and community to access issuers of structured products. From best price discovery to order fulfilment, our subscribers benefit from unique data analytics through a comprehensive global network.
Contineo is proud to count the world’s leading private and investment banks as subscribers. To learn more and see a demo please visit www.contineo.link or contact info@contineo.com.hk.

The new product suite will provide market participants with insight into a previously opaque market.

Contineo, a network serving the wealth management industry, has announced the launch of I/O, a suite of data products designed to bring transparency to equity-linked structured products.

According to Contineo, this is the first time such a large amount of data has been collated and analysed to provide subscribers on the network insight into their business and performance, as well as providing other market participants with insight into a previously opaque market.
Efficiencies

The service is useful for private banks, investment banks and other financial institutions such as asset managers and hedge funds, financial technology providers and the general structured product industry.

Subscribers can utilise the service to assist relationship managers with more product insight and create efficiency at the trading desk and for investment banks, to improve pricing and increase market depth.

Contineo CEO Mark Munoz commented: “The launch of I/O represents a sizeable milestone in the evolution of the structured products space. The data analytics and insights have never been available before and we think the applications will be really varied as market participants seek to understand this previously opaque part of the financial products landscape.”

I/O is a standalone set of products that includes proprietary analysis for Contineo subscribers, and anonymous market data. Proprietary analyses include executive dashboards at individual bank and whole-of-market level, which inform subscribers about internal performance at individual, team and firm level, as well as performance relative to other firms. The system also generates specific reports on request.

Contineo designed I/O so each bank’s data is protected, segregated, securely stored and remains private, and the market view is entirely anonymous.
Data Feed

I/O also offers a data feed for service integration and document generation, bringing efficiency to these processes for the first time. This offering allows for banks’ operations teams to work with the data sets directly to suit their specific internal needs. Both proprietary and market overview data can be delivered directly into user’s internal systems.

“I/O is an important step for Contineo,” continued Munoz. “Having built the network and seen the growth in our volume, our next step was delivering the analytics this industry so desperately needs.”

Contineo Launches Data Service Bringing Transparency to Structured Products

ABOUT CONTINEO
Contineo is the first industry supported open messaging network and community to access issuers of structured products. From best price discovery to order fulfilment, our subscribers benefit from unique data analytics through a comprehensive global network.
Contineo is proud to count the world’s leading private and investment banks as subscribers. To learn more and see a demo please visit www.contineo.link or contact info@contineo.com.hk.

Contineo’s I/O provides financial service providers and market participants with proprietary analysis and data on the structured products market.

Contineo, the industry-backed messaging network for equity- linked structured products, has launched I/O, a data analytics tool that collates and analyzes data on its existing network to provide users with insights into market activity.

I/O is a set of products for Contineo subscribers that includes proprietary analysis and anonymous market data about structured products activity over the vendor’s network.

These include firm-wide and market-wide executive dashboards that provide insight into users’ performance at an individual, team and firm level, as well as their performance relative to other firms.

Subscribers to Contineo’s network have access to basic reports, while more comprehensive enterprise reports and an API datafeed are available for an additional fee. By analyzing activity, users will be able to adjust their strategies─for example, to achieve greater insight into client relationships, or to improve pricing and market depth in response to changes in activity.

Subscribers will have access to charts and rankings on request for quote (RFQs) and request for order (RFO) activity, and aggregated views on products that are trending and selling in the market. The data is segregated by individual bank, and any potentially identifying information is removed for the market view.

Contineo’s I/O has been generating reports for subscribers since September 2016, and will launch the second version of the platform later this year. A third version is already in development, and will offer additional forward-looking features. For example, if a structured product will expire soon, I/O will provide options that the client can take, such as to either roll the product over or hold it to expiry.

The tool also generates compliance and regulatory reports, and officials say it will appeal to a range of financial institutions, from private banks and investment banks to asset managers, hedge funds, and financial technology providers serving the structured products industry, and will serve a range of applications as market participants seek to apply the never-before available information to a previously opaque market.

“Private banks have never had a trusted source for market intelligence in their business and this is key and it’s proving to be a useful tool for them, particularly on the buy side. The network is a great utility but the data helps them grow their business,” says Contineo chief executive Mark Munoz. “We are helping the buy side in terms of running their operations. It gives them more insight into their business, usage and user activity. For the sell-side, they are more interested in the market impact report, and I/O also allows them to see why they’ve missed a trade.”

Contineo has seven private banks subscribed to its network, and has seen a 20 percent increase in traffic on the network so far in January 2017 alone, officials say.

https://www.waterstechnology.com/inside-market-data/news/2480994/contineo-launches-data-analytics-for-structured-products-community

ABOUT CONTINEO

Contineo is the first industry supported, open messaging network for private banks and wealth management firms to access issuers of structured products. Together we are a community with a shared vision and purpose.

We believe that technology should be intuitive, easy to access, and available to all participants. This means creating an open messaging standard in concert with the buy-side and sell-side, and enabling access to all parties, including other certified technology vendors.

This mission is shared by our current subscribers, who recognise the importance of an open, efficient and transparent network.

Given that market conditions have not been favourable for eld testing the automation of large volumes, 2016 has proven a tough year for gauging the absolute effectiveness of multi-dealer platforms. Invariably though, exceptional multi-dealer platform providers hold a long-term mentality and the belief that a business driven by markets and appetite demands perseverance.

One such provider has remained resilient amidst financial, economic, and political head- winds. Contineo, the equity-linked platform supported by a gallery of bulge bracket providers, experienced an exponential growth in orders and a doubling client base in what managing director, Mark Muñoz, calls a banner year.

“The volume increase was not deterred by overall market performance as we rolled out access to relationship managers and more trade desk users,” he says.

Muñoz attributes Contineo’s success to a number of developments to the platform, with the rm rolling out updates to tools like Contineo I/O, a data service that allows for mar- ket analysis through evaluation of user data. us far, these updates have numbered an impressive 50, including the implementation of utilities for the amendment of orders and the uploading of complex pricing requests through spreadsheets.

“These new features are widely praised by our clients and have also increased the amount of flow the firms trade electronically,” he adds. “We are very excited for the next steps in the company’s growth. We are currently working with our clients to determine the next set of payoffs and how we can assist in post-trade services, as well as further enhancing our new data services.”

For its continuous commitment to enhancement and a ra of new milestones achieved, Contineo has been voted as this year’s Best Multi-dealer Platform.

ABOUT CONTINEO

Contineo is the first industry supported, open messaging network for private banks and wealth management firms to access issuers of structured products. Together we are a community with a shared vision and purpose.

We believe that technology should be intuitive, easy to access, and available to all participants. This means creating an open messaging standard in concert with the buy-side and sell-side, and enabling access to all parties, including other certified technology vendors.

This mission is shared by our current subscribers, who recognise the importance of an open, efficient and transparent network.

Contineo is a network that facilitates pricing and order processing between buy-side and sell-side firms. It is the WhatsApp of structured products! As our technology was developed as a set of standards for the industry, we are able to have all subscribers agree to a set of technical and operating principles in order to create a more efficient marketplace for standard flow products.

Contineo is much more than just a network – we’re an open industry organisation where all our subscribers can benefit and can help drive innovation for the network.

Our technology facilitates a unique set of data analytics that our subscribers can use for compliance and regulatory reporting. They can also see the performance of their business and what the overall flow for structure products looks like in Asia.
Why did you see the need for a structured products platform?

Currently, trading of structured products is a highly manual process, with most banks using Excel and email for pricing and trading. This leads to errors and is costly for both sides of the transaction. Through Contineo, we’ve managed to standardise the workflow. This has made it more transparent for businesses, compliance, relationship managers and others.
Who has signed up for this platform?

Contineo covers four of Asia’s top 10 private banks and six of the top 20 as subscribers, as measured by AuM. This is effectively 40% of the total market measured by AuM.
How receptive are banks to the products developed by fintech companies in the region?

Banks have embraced fintech companies as they look to automate processes and find technology that helps increase product distribution.

The challenge banks face isn’t working with fintech companies, but being able to adapt these technologies so as not to disrupt the running of the banks. Contineo helps banks achieve this by moving them from a highly manual, errorprone process to one that is simply online using a web-based tool.

The real problem is fintech companies sometimes don’t understand the bank’s processes, regulatory challenges, and the internal hurdles and timeframe it takes to adapt new technology.

Many early-stage fintech companies can become disillusioned with the process because of the length of time to move from proof of concept to production and the high costs of implementing and maintaining an application for a bank.

Contineo was able to work with regulators, investment banks and private banks prior to launching to gain an understanding of their problems before developing a solution that was eventually adopted and supported by the industry.
What are the main technological challenges that private banks face in Asia?

I believe there are two primary challenges for private banks in the region.

First, private banking is often based on tradition and building personal relationships with clients. However, the demographic of the client has shifted over the past decade to a much younger, more physically mobile and tech savvy individual. This new generation is online, uses social media, communicates more through chat than over the phone or face to face. Therefore, private banks must adapt technologies, processes and communication channels so they benefit and ease the burden for their clients.

Second, there is continued information saturation in the market. Long gone are simple research reports where a client has the time to consume and understand the information.

Now clients are inundated with information from every source point – online, mobile, television, streaming news services and more.

Private banks will struggle as they try to capture their clients’ attention with the most relevant information to ensure their clients make an informed and confident decision.
Are there plans for new products or services in the pipeline?

We expect to announce a major new service late in the second quarter of the year. We will also announce new payoffs to add to the platform at the end of the year and new subscribers who will join on both the buy and sell sides.

This interview was published in the April issue of Citywire Asia magazine.

Mark Munoz, Managing Director for Contineo & Venture Partner at Vectr Ventures

Financial Technology – or FinTech as it is commonly known – is riding a wave of unabated enthusiasm. The industry attracted US$12.2 billion of capital in 2014 alone1, with new players looking to replace or enhance traditional banking services – from smartphones offering contact‐free payments to artificial intelligence services providing investment advice. Banks are realizing that the days of incrementally updating legacy systems and patching solutions when possible are ending. In turn, there is a shift from the “run versus change” mentality toward a “run versus innovate” model.

FinTech startups are gaining recognition from banks and investors alike, albeit for different reasons. Whereas banks are keen on partnering with those who can offer them an edge in this digital shift (whether by cost streamlining, providing greater transparency for regulators, increasing their service distribution range or revamping outdate processes), investors should instead be looking at how sustainable their business model is, or whether they have a competitive advantage to endure a financing crisis during their early growth phase; when their brand is not yet well established. In either case, investing in FinTech is not a short term trade, it should be done by those who are prepared to be long term partners. Given the importance of longer term sustainability, below are a few aspects investors need to consider:

The strength of the team is the top criteria. Unsurprisingly it is among the first things experienced VCs look at when making an investment. Having the right team can make or break the company, more so than the idea behind it. Investors will want to look at the right level of expertise and experience of the founders, the right background/academics, past track record and reputation in the sector.

Investors should be familiar with the startup’s niche sector and business model. Although often used as a generic term, FinTech tends to be quite specialized across a wide range functions, from data analytics companies that establish a borrower’s loan risk to blockchain solutions for derivatives trading and the record‐keeping of complex products. This means keeping up‐to‐date with market developments and becoming comfortable with the nuances of the sector. It’s important to note, most FinTech startups won’t survive the first years; so if investors do not understand bitcoin, or payments, or lending, it may be best to invest elsewhere. Understanding the competitive landscape is necessary, as the companies that lack competitive advantage will be quick to fall behind the pack.

Keeping close checks on market changes and emerging trends is especially relevant. In this sector there are many fast moving parts. A new technology, a newly accessed market or changing regulation can quickly blindside someone looking to make an investment without the proper due diligence. The emergence of RegTech (technology focused on supporting banks in meeting their strict and ever‐ changingregulatory requirements), for instance, is a testament to how new entrants are creatingsolutions for an evolvingindustry demand. Fintech can be a catalyst for innovation, benefitting banks and regulators alike and create key opportunities.

The potential market size is big, there is a sound strategy to win customers; but how well can a small company take advantage of this opportunity? Having a scalable business model is imperative for success. Scalability and an appropriate pricing model makes a notable difference from leveraging distribution networks, engaging in trusted partnerships and cost advantages. Scale ensures the business can grow up to a level where investors will get their money back.

Whether a startup, a home or an asset, an investor needs to trust what he is buying and to be convinced that this business addresses a real concern or problem in the marketplace. The founders’ vision needs to solve a problem and do so in a simple and innovative way. If the supply chain is too complex, or the value proposition is not clear, the investor might need to rethink.

The FinTech space is quickly becoming a crowded one. The added choice is great for consumers and market participants, but what does it mean for the sector? The FinTech world also has its fair share of challenges and shortcomings compared to leading banks. These include questions around client trust, a lack of long‐term credibility and the absence of an existing client base. Another difficulty is the culture clash that potentially exists between the tech and banking world. Successful startups will need to adapt to the inner workings of banks and gain credibility for delivering trustworthy solutions for consumers.

Out of expediency, banks have typically had a culture of quick fixes and improvised patches, mixed with long approval processes and committee sign‐offs. As with any investment, understanding the risks is imperative.

It should be apparent by this point that FinTech will soon be facing a big rationalization. Does it mean that now is not the time to look at investment opportunities? Of course not, the potential opportunities are too great to ignore. It does mean, however, that this is the time to be selective and discern which will be the startups that will define the future of the sector. Investors must look past the noise and hype surrounding FinTech and choose the right founders, with innovative ideas, who are well placed to capitalize on emerging technologies in this new market.