System and method for processing securities trading instructions and communicating order status via a messaging interface

• US 8,176,127 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2005
• Issued: 05/08/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Inc. (CME Group Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Pivot Solutions Inc. (CME Group Incorporated)
• Inventors: Keen, Thomas R. Jr., Shen, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Lazaro, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): KIM, EDWARD J
• Application Number:
  US11/192,905
• Publication Number:
  US 20060026091A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,475 Days
• Field of Search: 709204-207
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0283 Price estimation or determination
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/03 Credit; Loans; Processing thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

A system allowing traders, etc. to use instant messaging (IM) (or other non-FIX based) communications to input trading instructions directly into a broker'"'"'s Order Management System (OMS) for managing/executing trades. Accordingly, trading instructions may be provided electronically directly from a buy-side trader, and directly to a sell-side broker'"'"'s/brokerage'"'"'s OMS, without the need for the sell-side broker to manually re-key the order into the sell-side firm'"'"'s OMS. Further, trading instructions are provided in electronic format directly to the broker'"'"'s OMS without the need for the buy-side trader to have an expensive FIX based OMS or associated FIX connection, which is also expensive, thereby allowing relatively smaller investment houses/buy-side organizations to enjoy the benefits of electronic delivery of trading instructions directly to brokers'"'"' OMS.

Claims

1. A method for communicating instructions to a computerized order management system (OMS) of a securities brokerage firm, the method comprising a computerized system:

receiving a plurality of electronic communications via a communications network, wherein at least one of the plurality of electronic communications comprises a textual body of natural language content;

displaying the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications on a display screen of the computerized order management system (OMS);

scanning the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications to identify at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords corresponding to a command to execute a trade by the OMS, each of said plurality of keywords corresponding to a respective instruction to execute a request to trade by the OMS;

parsing the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications to identify at least one parameter corresponding to the respective instruction to execute the request to trade by the OMS;

identifying, based at least in part, on the at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords and the at least one parameter, the request to trade;

preparing, in response to scanning and parsing, an OMS-compliant communication including the at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords and the at least one parameter reflecting the respective instruction to execute the trade by the OMS; and

transmitting the OMS-compliant communication to the OMS via a communications network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said communications network comprises an instant messaging communications network, and wherein said communication comprises an instant message (IM) communication.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the OMS-compliant communication is prepared to comply with the FIX protocol.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said preparing comprises:

mapping at least one of the instruction and the at least one parameter for the communication to a corresponding field according to the FIX protocol to present at least one of the instruction and the at least one parameter in the corresponding field.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the parsing is performed according to a prescribed sequence of variables.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the parsing identifies values for each of the variables, each of the variables corresponding to a respective one of a plurality of fields according to a predefined protocol, the preparing comprising:

composing the OMS-compliant communication to include each of the values arranged in a respective field in accordance with the predefined protocol.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the communication is performed in an automated fashion by the computerized system in response to a human sender operating instant message (IM) client software to provide an instruction to send an IM communication to a virtual buddy appearing in a buddy list, said virtual buddy corresponding to an automated computer process and not to a human recipient having a corresponding IM buddy identity.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein preparing the OMS-compliant communication comprises preparing a new communication.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

preparing a confirmatory communication reflecting the respective instruction and the at least one trade parameter; and

transmitting the confirmatory communication to a sender of the communication via the communications network.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving via the communications network, in response to the acts of preparing and transmitting, an affirmative confirmatory communication from the sender of the communication.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the respective instruction comprises an instruction to trade a security.

12. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

scanning the IM communication to identify at least one of a predefined second plurality of keywords, each of the second plurality if keywords corresponding to a respective instruction to provide information stored externally to an OMS;

parsing the IM communication to identify at least one parameter corresponding to the respective instruction to provide information stored externally to the OMS;

retrieving from a database external to the OMS information relating to the respective instruction to provide information stored externally to an OMS;

preparing a responsive IM communication providing the information retrieved from the database; and

transmitting the responsive IM communication via the instant messaging communications network to a sender of the IM communication.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the respective instruction to provide information stored externally to an OMS comprises an instruction to provide research information relating to a security.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the respective instruction to provide information stored externally to an OMS comprises an instruction to provide trade blotter information.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing, in a memory of the computerized system, said plurality of predefined keywords.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the communication to an intended recipient if the scanning does not identify at least one of the predefined plurality of keywords in the communication.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein said parsing, preparing and transmitting being performed only if the scanning identifies at least one of the predefined plurality of keywords in the communication.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the instruction and the parameter identifies a trading algorithm, the OMS being capable of performing trading according to the trading algorithm.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, via the communications network, the OMS-compliant communication;

adding a record to a database of the OMS, the record comprising the instruction and the parameter; and

the OMS performing an action in accordance with the instruction and the parameter.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said adding is performed responsive to receipt of the OMS-compliant communication, in an automated fashion, irrespective of any subsequent human interaction.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein performing the action comprises execution of a trade of securities.

24. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one of the plurality of electronics communications comprises an instant message, and content of the instant message is accepted in a non-standard transaction protocol.

25. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the acts of:

determining, if the request to trade is complete, wherein the act of determining includes

an act of identifying any missing instructions and any missing parameters necessary to perform the requested trade;

transmitting, a request to a sender of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications to complete any missing information; and

receiving from the sender any missing information.

26. The method according to claim 1, further comprising logging the-a textual body of natural language content in a compliance system.

22. A system for communicating instructions to a computerized order management system (OMS) of a securities brokerage firm, the system comprising:

a microprocessor;

a memory operatively connected to the microprocessor;

a network interface device operatively connected to the microprocessor for communicating via a communications network; and

instructions stored in the memory and executable by the microprocessor to carry out the method of;

receiving a plurality of electronic communications via a communications network, wherein at least one of the plurality of electronic communications comprises a textual body of natural language content;

displaying the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications on a display screen of the computerized order management system (OMS);

scanning the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications to identify at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords corresponding to a command to execute a trade by the OMS, each of said plurality of keywords corresponding to a respective instruction to execute a request to trade by the OMS;

parsing the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications to identify at least one parameter corresponding to the respective instruction to execute the request to trade by the OMS;

identifying, based at least in part, on the at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords and the at least one parameter, the request to trade;

preparing, in response to scanning and parsing, an OMS-compliant communication including the at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords and the at least one parameter reflecting the respective instruction to execute the trade by the OMS; and

transmitting the OMS-compliant communication to the OMS via a communications network.

23. A computer program product embodied on one or more non-transitory computer-readable media, the computer program product adapted for communicating instructions to a computerized order management system (OMS) of a securities brokerage firm and comprising computer-readable program code that, when executed by a processor, performs a method for communicating instructions to a computerized order management system (OMS) of a securities brokerage firm, the method comprising:

receiving a plurality of electronic communications via a communications network, wherein at least one of the plurality of electronic communications comprises a textual body of natural language content;

displaying the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications on a display screen of the computerized order management system (OMS);

scanning the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications to identify at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords corresponding to a command to execute a trade by the OMS, each of said plurality of keywords corresponding to a respective instruction to execute a request to trade by the OMS;

parsing the textual body of natural language content of the at least one of the plurality of electronic communications to identify at least one parameter corresponding to the respective instruction to execute the request to trade by the OMS;

identifying, based at least in part, on the at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords and the at least one parameter, the request to trade;

preparing, in response to scanning and parsing, an OMS-compliant communication including the at least one of a predefined plurality of keywords and the least one parameter reflecting the respective instruction to execute the trade by the OMS; and

transmitting the OMS-compliant communication to the OMS via a communications network.