SunGard Futures Systems, an operating unit of SunGard, announced today the availability of the new real-time version of its Global Margin Server (GMS), a central processing system for calculating initial and on-demand variation margin requirements for exchanged-traded derivatives orders, positions, “what if” simulations, and portfolios. GMS provides real-time, intra-day variation margin calculations, Internet deployment, and can be integrated with any core order routing, settlement, risk, or portfolio management system.
Traditionally, margin calls were based on initial margin calculations in a T+1 environment, or communicated the day after the trade via a statement. With the real-time GMS system, margin calls are provided in real time throughout the day in T+0, enabling customers to see their margin obligations the actual day of the trade. GMS calculates margins in real-time by individual trade, product, exchange, region, or globally, either on-demand or automatically via a scheduler via the Internet. GMS provides a browser-based interface that can be easily integrated into customers’ existing Web portals.
“GMS takes the power of margining out of the back office and into the front lines, giving futures brokers and their customers more control and flexibility,” said Peter Hollenstein, vice president of strategic development at SunGard Futures Systems. “The real-time GMS capability allows our customers to utilize their capital more efficiently, recognize more investment opportunities faster, and mitigate risk more effectively.”
Fully platform independent, GMS is designed as a freestanding application that readily interfaces with any back office settlement system, and is accessed by traders internally over a network, or by clients via an Internet portal. The system accepts trade and position feeds from virtually any source and uses files directly from exchanges without the need to reformat data, thereby eliminating costly delays. GMS supports a vast majority of margin algorithms in use by global clearinghouses and exchanges, and calculates thousands of positions in seconds, even when hosted on a standard desktop PC.
“GMS underlines our commitment to the derivatives industry,” said Steve Auerbach, chief operating officer at SunGard Futures Systems. “With its real-time and robust risk management features, GMS provides a range of uses across the STP cycle, making it a valuable and diverse application for any participant-from futures brokers, to risk managers, prime brokers and global custodians.”