Kiodex, an IT firm acquired recently by SunGard, says its Web-services platform for corporate risk management, financial reporting and regulatory compliance is selling wel to banks, brokers and fund managers active in trading energy commodities The company has signed six new subscribers, including broker/dealer FIMAT USA, Inc. and energy hedge fund Vega Plus Capital Partners, LLC.
“The emergence of investment banks and hedge funds recently as energy commodities traders is helping to revitalize energy trading,” says Gary M. Vasey, VP, Trading & Risk Management Practice for leading energy and utility industry analysis and consulting firm, UtiliPoint International, Inc. “This increased activity is helping to increase liquidity in the markets and Kiodex has succeeded in capitalizing on the renewed activity.”
According to Raj Mahajan, President, Kiodex, “There has been a liquidity vacuum in energy trading that needs to be filled by entities with strong credit. The investment banks and hedge funds, with pristine balance sheets, are seizing this opportunity. This is reflected in the growing demand for data and trading and risk management tools generally across the banking, brokerage, and funds segment of the industry.”
“We are now seeing the emergence of true financial markets in energy trading with the participation of hedge funds, investment banks, and multinational oil companies who all have the balance sheet to take on more financial risk,” agrees Peter Fusaro, Chairman of Global Change Associates, an energy risk management consultancy based in New York.