Cobalt, EPAM partner to launch FIX gateway for digital asset markets

By Sunniva Kolostyak

Cobalt, the London-based provider of risk and settlement infrastructure, today unveiled a partnership with digital platform engineering and developer EPAM Systems to create the first-ever institutional-grade FIX gateway for the digital asset markets.

The Cobalt Trading Hub, a low latency institutional FIX gateway for trading, risk and market data, will provide connectivity to over 50 digital asset exchanges and market makers, allowing participants to trade safely with reduced market risk and secure, real-time settlement.

With institutional investors increasingly looking to enter the digital asset market, and with expanding regulatory oversight, the new service will offer connectivity, pricing and pre-trade credit checks for market participants. The service will also provide Cobalt’s post-trade services, powered by its centralised credit and collateral service, which is a part of Cobalt’s Risk Hub.

Commenting on the launch, Adrian Patten, Chairman and co-founder of Cobalt, said that as the appeal of digital assets continues to grow, the company has a unique opportunity to reshape market infrastructure for DA and FX.

He said: “Industry-leading technology, products and services are central to our partnership with EPAM. Together, we will provide a gateway for all market participants to trade safely, reduce market risk and achieve secure real-time settlement. EPAM’s engineering talent and deep market knowledge make them an ideal partner when creating a critical new solution for a rapidly growing market environment.”

The service will be based on the Real-Time Computing Lab at EPAM’s TimeBase and Ember software, which have been the foundational components of their multi-asset systematic trading and analytics solutions for more than 10 years.

“We are delighted to work with Cobalt on this project,” Ilya Gorelik, VP, Real-Time Computing Lab at EPAM, said.

“The combination of our time-tested software and experience of institutional trading firms with Cobalt’s post-trade FX services should set a new standard for trading in FX and digital assets”.

Hosted on Cobalt’s Institutional Infrastructure, the new service operates to the highest regulatory standards and best practices within capital markets for existing market-leading FX clients. The FIX gateway will mitigate the problem of “lost orders” while removing the risk of breaking limits or over trading by providing low latency pre-trade credit checking for digital assets and FX.