Are Your Options Running Out For Options Symbology?
The Options Symbology Initiative (“OSI”) is a comprehensive, industry-wide plan that will eliminate the current 5-character OPRA code for options by February 2010. Given our extensive industry experience, our knowledge of the issues surrounding symbology, and our ability to resolve those issues (particularly through our affiliation with the Financial Information Forum), Jordan & Jordan is uniquely positioned to provide insight and assistance with your firm’s options symbology conversion program.What Is Needed For Your Firm To Be Ready?
Beginning June 27, 2008, the OCC and US options exchanges will send and receive “OSI-compliant” data in a production environment. Firms should be focused now on internal development and testing, in order to be ready for industry tests set to begin in September 2009. Mandatory cutover to the new symbology is planned for February 12, 2010.Even firms that depend on vendor services for certain aspects of the trade process will themselves need to address integration with upstream and downstream applications. While each firm is different in terms of its internal systems and external interfaces, at a minimum, any process that relies on options trade and quote information, routes orders to an options exchange, interacts with the clearinghouse, or accesses a security master file for descriptive details, will warrant careful review. With so many mission-critical applications:
- How can you minimize the impact of these changes on end-users, particularly your customers and traders?
- How can you be sure the integrity of your systems and data is preserved in the course of changing symbology?
How Can Jordan & Jordan Help?
Each application will require its own analysis, its own solution, and its own project plan for implementation and testing. At a time when internal resources are short, and the list of critical application changes is long, here’s what Jordan & Jordan can do for your firm:- Review and analyze snapshot quotes against network quote data to determine latency metrics
- Document the business requirements for change in each of the impacted applications. Assist your staff in determining the most efficient approach that will have the least impact on downstream applications and end-users.
- Liaison with your vendors to understand their transition plans and determine the integration requirements and modifications your firm will need to make to adjacent processes.
- Apply proprietary tools and trained personnel to your Q/A and testing process for internal unit testing to be completed prior to industry tests scheduled to begin on September 12, 2009.
- Provide experienced, disciplined project management resources to ensure a smooth transition for your options processes to the new symbology.
- Provide ongoing guidance regarding programming and testing milestones required to meet the transitional changes dictated by each of the exchanges and utilities involved in the OSI.