A priority in 2020 for the Cboe Information Solutions team was enhancing Cboe Silexx, a next generation version of its legacy Silexx platform. The new Cboe Silexx features enhanced top-of-the-line data and analytics from Cboe Information Solutions along with back-end improvements that make the platform a more efficient, compliant way for traders to manage orders and executions. 

Throughout the many challenges presented by 2020, Cboe Global Markets remained steadfast in providing superior technology solutions and client workflow optimizations to its electronic trading environment. By leveraging its mature and robust proprietary trading platform, which was acquired in 2017, Cboe Information Solutions began to transition its legacy platform into a next generation trading software and connectivity solutions provider.

Cboe Silexx is the primary multi-asset order and execution management system (OEMS) of choice for Cboe’s floor brokers. It remains exchange- and broker-neutral and allows both buy- and sell-side customers to quickly and easily trade. The platform allows Cboe to interact with customers in a deeper way and supports the evolution of new solutions. Cboe Silexx provides many key features for its users, including order staging, risk management capabilities, a FIX order routing and trade reporting network, as well as regulatory and compliance features. As a RegSCI platform, Cboe Silexx adheres to higher standards in terms of quality, security and reporting, further differentiating it from other trading platforms within the industry.

“Our customers need a user friendly, cost effective trading platform that facilitates workflows both on and off the trading floor, and we’re dedicated to creating innovative financial tools for all of our customers’ trading needs,” says Geralyn Endo, Cboe’s Head of Information Solutions Client Engagement. “We’ve designed Cboe Silexx to be highly customizable, which can help customers manage their trades in a more seamless and efficient manner.”

Additionally, Cboe Silexx allows traders to simultaneously and electronically access markets via connectivity to Cboe’s options and futures exchanges, with equities to come in 2021. As a part of its next generation development, Cboe Silexx allows traders to simultaneously and electronically access the markets via connectivity to Cboe’s options and futures exchanges, third party routers, and high-touch broker relationships. By the end of 2020, Cboe completed the transition of its PULSe trader workstation (PULSe) users to this next generation Cboe Silexx platform.

“Transitioning all of our on- and off-floor brokers to Cboe Silexx, our own in-house platform, provides our customers with the same great access they currently enjoy from order inception to execution,” Endo explains. “By continuing to bridge the gap between electronic systems and the excellent open-outcry liquidity at Cboe, we are able to increase workflow efficiency, enhance compliance reporting and improve execution quality.”

A key additional benefit of providing an in-house platform means Cboe now has the ability to make updates across its platforms concurrently. For example, the moment there are enhancements to Cboe’s FLexible EXchange (FLEX) options in the matching engine, which handles nearly 90 percent of Cboe’s FLEX activity, users will have immediate access to those same enhancements in Cboe Silexx, a testament to its ability to evolve with the marketplace.

“Keeping users up to speed remains paramount as Cboe Options Exchange was the only platform that supported electronic FLEX trading,” Endo says. “This exclusive offering made Cboe Silexx beneficial to traders because it provides access to Cboe’s fully electronic FLEX functionality.”

Behind the scenes, and for executing brokers to be able to continue facilitating access to all markets, Cboe Silexx has also improved its FIX Network — automatically connecting to the networks of its users’ firms, which automates much of the communication usually done by brokers. This makes the order and execution handling process — which was historically managed over the phone or instant message — more efficient, as well as easier from a compliance standpoint. With so much of the reporting automated, the room for human error is greatly reduced, providing peace of mind to Cboe Silexx users and their clients. In short, users and their constituents benefit from this extensive network of order routing and trade reporting connectivity, which makes for a more comprehensive platform to support the entire workflow.

The Cboe Silexx team is also working to incorporate additional Information Solutions offerings to continue enhancing its interface for its customers. By powering Cboe Silexx with data and analytics from Cboe Information Solutions, Cboe is able to intertwine its suite of offerings into Cboe Silexx to drive more informed trading at every step of the way.

Equally important, Cboe Silexx now includes a direct feed of Cboe Hanweck’s Implied Volatilities and Greeks, adding another layer of real-time analytics to help Cboe Silexx users manage risk and make up-to-date decisions. Further, Cboe Silexx’s new complex order book view provides richer data in a more user-friendly interface while also increasing transparency. To continue providing exceptional value for its customers, Cboe Silexx plans to add other Information Solutions offerings into its platform in the future, including components of FT Options risk analytics.

“The robust analytics and market intelligence within Cboe Silexx make it easier and more efficient for users to see what’s happening in the market and then quickly execute a trade based on that information,” Endo says. “These synergies are a key part of the enhancements to Cboe Silexx and are a shining example of the Cboe Information Solutions vision.

Cboe’s vision to grow the Cboe Silexx user base, combined with an integrated platform that harnesses the power of Information Solutions’ data and analytics offering, gives Cboe Silexx the punch it needs to meet the evolving needs of the marketplace.

“In a year characterized by working virtually, reliable and effective communication has remained absolute,” Endo says. “It’s even more important in this virtual world in which we live to be able to personalize real-time support and step-by-step training to continue to provide exceptional client service. Cboe Information Solutions’ trio of service, analytics and technology allows us to do just that and define markets for years to come.”

For more information, visit www.silexx.com/cboesilexx.