Overview of Vendor, Deltix

http://www.deltixlab.com/

Deltix is a leader in the rapidly growing market for advanced alpha generation platforms. Deltix software enables a complete straight through processing environment for the development and deployment of closely-integrated alpha generation and order execution portfolio strategies.

A Product Suite for Full Life Cycle Coverage

The Deltix Product Suite provides end-to-end support of all phases of the alpha discovery process, including data collection and aggregation, model development, back-testing, simulation and deployment to production.

 

 

 

The diagram below illustrates the Alpha Generation Lifecycle from a process-flow perspective.

 

The full lifecycle is often implemented with a combination of different vendor software products. Whilst this can work, this approach has a number of drawbacks versus the benefits of a single-vendor platform:

 

Multiple Instrument Types

Equities, options, futures, currencies, baskets and custom synthetic instruments are supported.

 

Rapid Alpha Generation Research

Easy and intuitive model development framework (either C# programming and/or visual “drag and drop”) combined with the integrated time-series database and visual rendering of results makes for rapid model development.

 

Unparalleled Performance

Exceptional performance capabilities enable rapid analysis of thousands of instruments for daily, intraday and tick data.

 

Open and Flexible Architecture

An open architecture environment allows seamless and robust integration with multiple data feeds (e.g. Bloomberg, Thomson/Reuters etc.) and best-in-class software solutions including those for tick processing order execution management and statistical analysis (e.g. Matlab).

 

Standard Infrastructure

No specialized hardware is required. Deltix software runs on standard Windows machines, or Linux/UNIX for some modules. The software is written in C# and Java.

 

Modules for Specific Situations

The Deltix Product Suite comprises modules (all developed in-house by Deltix) which have optimal interaction with each other, but which also can be deployed as modules for specific situations.

The Deltix Cloud

DELTIX CLOUD SERVICES (DCS)

DCS is a combination of Deltix resources for the increasing number of systematic quantitative research analysts and traders; more specifically, people who want to develop and test theories of how individual financial assets, or groups of them, behave. The goal of many quantitative researchers (“quants”) is to develop models which have enough predictive power for trading to generate sufficient profits (net of commissions and operating costs) to provide a return sufficient to compensate for the risks inherent in trading.

At Deltix, we have been providing software and services to this community for over six years. Today our clients are investment banks, hedge funds, independent proprietary trading firms, commodity trading advisers (CTA’s) and some individual traders. We know the challenges, technical and practical, that make such quantitative research work well. Or fail. At its best, quantitative research is exciting and rewarding – culminating in alpha generation models which trade profitably. At worst, it is extremely frustrating. We have found that many of these frustrations arise in the preparatory steps – before the actual research starts. These frustrations often revolve around data and technology: Where do I get data from? How do I judge the quality? How can I physically get the data given the sheer size? How can I process such large volumes of data?

DCS is designed for firms and individuals who want to do quantitative research without the headaches of data and technology procurement.

We are providing two sets of DCS resources to meet the needs of researchers and traders:

• DCS for Quantitative Research (DCS-QR)
• DCS for Quantitative Trading (DCS-QT)

Currently, we are providing DCS for Quantitative Research only. We will be offering DCS for Quantitative Trading very soon.

In short, DCS provides the capability for firms and individuals (novices or experienced practitioners) to access institutional grade software bundled with market data.

DCS – Quantitative Resources and Components

DCS for Quantitative Research (DCS-QR) provides.

• Software (TimeBase and QuantOffice)
• Historical Market Data
• User and technical documentation, and a user community (Deltix Developer Network, or DDN)

Research is performed using Deltix QuantOffice. Each DCS user downloads a special “DCS Edition” of QuantOffice to run on their own personal computer. This DCS Edition of QuantOffice automatically connects to our data servers over the internet. Our data servers are hosted at an Equinix facility (www.equinix.com). They run TimeBase, which maintains a master copy of the market data which we have procured from various providers and which we update monthly. Currently, we have three years of FX market data available and will be providing equities and alternative types very soon. We are not providing tick data as part of DCS, rather we are creating and providing “enhanced bars”, in sizes measured in seconds and minutes.  

Each user of DCS is automatically enrolled into the Deltix Developer Network. DDN provides user guides, training materials, sample strategies and access to the community of other Deltix users with whom you can interact.