consolidated tape

There’s a battle raging just out of view on Europe’s financial markets. It’s a fight between data originators – largely but not only the stock exchanges – and the data users – who could be anyone active on the markets  – over the proposed “consolidated tape” which aims to improve access to trading data. Selling access has become “probably one of their biggest cash cows,” said a representative for Europe’s asset management sector, commenting on the position of the stock exchanges.

With the endorsement of almost all European stock exchanges, the “consolidated tape” recently booked significant progress. Hurdles remains however, as representatives of stock exchanges and asset managers remain at loggerheads. “Europe risks missing the boat on this entire issue of really getting market structure right,” FESE’s director general Rainer Riess told Investment Officer.