If the thought of obtaining high quality and affordable securities reference data gives you a headache, you are not alone. You know that if mistakes occur along the way, they will cost you time and money.
If you consume data on a daily basis to manage risk, comply with the different regulations, maximize operational efficiency or feed different business applications, know that the process of obtaining high quality, timely and affordable securities reference data can be made painless.
Here are 5 tips to help you.
1. Call in a securities reference data expert to advise you
If granularity is top of your list of priorities, know that there are data vendors in the market able to help you. For instance Exchange Data International’s securities reference file gives you access to dynamically updated, maintained and detailed information on over 1,300,000 listed and unlisted securities including:
- Equities Certificates Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)
- Debt instruments Mutual funds Indices
- Warrants
2. Choose a vendor that provides tools for customising your search
Ensure your securities reference data partner can provide you with the ability to easily select data that matters to you. Indeed Exchange Data International’s search tools allows you to search and select data from over 40 fields including:
- SEDOL™
- ISIN
- CUSIP
- Tickers
- Issuer name
- Country of register
- Security class
- CFI
- Industry classification
3. Choose a data vendor that uses universal symbology
Universal identifiers, such as Bloomberg Symbology ones, are essential for anyone researching and trading securities, assessing risk, managing portfolios, and managing settlement and clearing as they allow you to quickly cross check data with other providers.
4. Have the ability to classify securities by industry sector
If your job requires you to:
- Design and carry out portfolio strategies
- Evaluate industries
- Define regional and global trends
- Make informed decisions
Then choose a data vendor such as Exchange Data International, who has combined its securities reference data offering with GICS.
5. How to enjoy the lowest cost of ownership
Size matters. Know that niche firms can be flexible in their pricing. I should point out that Exchange Data International’s professional client management delivers the lowest cost of ownership whilst at the same time being the most responsive to client requests.
And finally, I always recommend you test reference data before you make a purchase. That is why Exchange Data International offers a free trial.
I trust these tips can help you with your search. In the meantime, if you would like to find out more about Exchange Data International’s securities reference data offering, then contact us.
About the author
Jonathan Bloch is a seasoned businessman. Originally from South Africa, he has been involved in publishing for nearly 35 years, during which time he was a Director of the quoted media company IBC Group plc (now Informa plc). He was also in charge of running their subsidiary companies in the US.
Jonathan established Exchange Data International in 1994. He has grown the business to have offices on four continents. His skills and experience have led him to involvement as a Non-Executive Director of many and varied types of companies.
