Capital Market Domain

For several years, I have developed an electronic trading platform for bonds and equities, primarily focusing on the US market. As the Tech Lead, my primary focus is designing and implementing technical solutions. However, I've struggled with industry jargon during meetings where my product manager discusses business and product roadmaps. This experience taught me that strong capital market domain knowledge is essential for providing effective technical solutions. I'm sharing some of the domain knowledge I've gathered to help others gain a basic understanding of this area.

Capital Market Domain Services:

Capital market domain services encompass a wide range of financial services and activities related to the trading of securities, such as stocks and bonds, in capital markets. These services are essential for the functioning of financial markets and the broader economy. Key services in this domain include:

1.Brokerage Services:

• Trading: Facilitating the buying and selling of securities on behalf of clients.

• Market Making: Providing liquidity by quoting buy and sell prices.

Examples:
Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, UBS and CitiGroup Global Markets

2.Investment Banking:

• Underwriting: Assisting companies in issuing new securities.

• Advisory: Providing strategic advice on mergers, acquisitions,and other corporate actions.

Examples:
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, J.P Morgan Chase and BAML

3.Asset Management:

• Portfolio Management: Managing investment portfolios on behalf of clients.

• Fund Management: Managing mutual funds, pension funds, and other
  investment funds.

Examples:
BlackRock, Fidelity Investments and Vanguard

4.Research and Analysis:

• Equity Research: Providing analysis and recommendations on stocks.

• Fixed Income Research: Providing analysis on bonds and other debt
  securities.

Examples:
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, J.P Morgan Chase and BAML

5.Clearing and Settlement:

• Clearing Services: Ensuring that trades are executed and settled
  properly.

• Custody Services: Safekeeping of securities on behalf of clients.

Examples:
Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), London Clearing House(LCH) and Euro Clear

6.Risk Management:

• Hedging Services: Using derivatives and other instruments to manage financial risk.

• Credit Rating: Assessing the creditworthiness of issuers of securities.

Examples:
KPMG,EY and Deloitte

7.Compliance and Regulatory Services:

• Regulatory Reporting: Ensuring adherence to financial regulations and reporting requirements.

• Compliance Monitoring: Monitoring trading activities to ensure
  
  compliance with laws and regulations.

Examples:
KPMG,EY,Deloitte and PWC

8.Financial Technology (FinTech) Services:

• Trading Platforms: Providing electronic platforms for trading
  securities.

• Data Analytics: Using big data and analytics to inform trading
  strategies and investment decisions.

Examples:
Bloomberg, Adyen and Plaid

9.Corporate Services:

• Investor Relations: Managing communication between a company and its investors.

• Treasury Management: Managing a company's liquidity, investments, and risk related to financial activities.

Examples:
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, J.P Morgan Chase and BAML

These services collectively facilitate the efficient functioning of capital markets, enabling companies to raise capital, investors to invest their funds, and markets to operate smoothly.

I am planning to share a couple of posts on the Bonds domain in the future, followed by some technical topics on Microservices, which I have used to build Bonds services for our trading platform.