Refinitiv and Microsoft agree on Azure partnership
Refinitiv has signed a partnership agreement with Microsoft which will see its new products and go-to-market services powered by the tech giant’s Azure cloud.
Refinitiv distributes more than 55 billion updates on financial markets a day
Refinitiv claims to provide data for 40,000 financial institutions in 190 countries. It distributes more than 55 billion updates on financial markets a day.
David Craig, CEO at Refinitiv, says his firm sees “huge benefits in working with Microsoft”. He adds that the tools provided via Azure will improve efficiency, collaboration and communication.
Refinitiv recently invested in AI-driven update service ModuleQ, a Microsoft partner which integrates with the latter’s Teams platform.
Ben Shepherd, chief strategy and innovation officer at Refinitiv, says messaging platforms like Teams have become valuable during the coronavirus pandemic.
“When you add tools within that collaboration platform to help people surface information quickly”.
“You create a seamless experience that brings the best of technology and data together with the human expertise needed to move markets forward.”
For Shepherd, financial services has had “far too few” sophisticated channels for information distribution.
Refinitiv is still in the middle of an acquisition saga, as the London Stock Exchange seeks to push through its $27 billion takeover.
The European Commission is still investigating the potential anticompetitive nature of the deal. LSE tried to sweeten the deal in August by hinting that it may offload its Borsa Italiana.
LSE is planning to fund the acquisition with new shares used as currency. Refinitiv’s existing investors will become LSE shareholders and own about 37% of the combined company.
Blue skies
Microsoft says that the partnership is a strengthening of its commitment to financial services.
Cindy Rose, Microsoft UK CEO, says the deal will “drive real innovation and transformation” in the financial services sector.
Microsoft has signed several finance-focused Azure deals this year. In August it added technology firm SimCorp and Standard Chartered.
A month before those deals, it announced an extension with banking software provider Finastra, and a deal with National Australia Bank.
Related: FIS claims early cloud investment prevented COVID-19 disruption
