FIA Boca is one of our favorite events of the year and the 2019 edition didn’t disappoint. In addition to high quality content that illuminates the most important issues facing the derivatives trading industry the conference also proved to be fertile ground for connecting with long-time industry colleagues as well as generating new business ideas.
Here are some of the highlights from our time in Boca Raton:
- Regulation is a big part of the conversation at Boca and this year was no exception. The CFTC and the EC have been on a collision course when it come to mutual recognition and that seemed to soften a bit with the release of a joint statement on EMIR 2.2. At the same time, the CFTC continues to enforce “the law with gusto and determination” with a “strong fist of enforcement is wrapped in a velvet glove”, as detailed in an address from CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo.
- A year ago, the price of bitcoin (BTC) was just under $9,000 and the memory of a price approaching $20,000 was fresh in everyone’s minds. Although the current price of the cryptocurrency is right around $4,000, there is no lack of energy and resources being put into building up the necessary infrastructure to expand the user base and participants. So, while the price of BTC might be down year-on-year, indications are for bullish long-term prospects for blockchain in general.
- The business climate in Boca was very positive and nearly all of those in attendance indicated that results were as good or better as any year in recent memory. In addition to strong showings from incumbents like CME Group, ICE, Eurex and Cboe Global Markets, new initiatives from incumbents like HKEX and MSCI and emerging opportunities from the likes of The Small Exchange (an Eventus partner), FreightWaves and VAKT reflect a strong and growing derivatives industry.
For further reading: In addition to FIA Boca, the Eventus team was in attendance at the FIA L&C and FIA IDX and filed reports on developments there as well.
Eventus Systems, Inc. offers one of the leading global trade surveillance and market risk platforms. Available as a cloud-based or real-time enterprise on-premise solution, the Validus platform provides sophisticated market surveillance and financial risk capabilities, enabling clients to solve some of the most pressing regulatory challenges. For more information, contact us at info@eventussytems.com.