Anticipatory excitement for the unified trading record

Anticipatory excitement for the unified trading record

Headline: Consolidated Tape Project Gains Momentum in EU and UK, Revolutionizing Bond Market

In a significant move towards modernizing market infrastructure, the Consolidated Tape Project is progressing in both the EU and UK, with the aim of creating a unified, transparent, and efficient data system for the bond market. This project, expected to launch in 2027 for equities and Q2 2027 for bonds, is set to revolutionize the market by providing real-time, high-quality data streams.

The U.S. Consolidated Tape Plan, mandated by a 2023 SEC order, is already in the development phase for equities, with a key milestone being the upcoming issuance of a Request for Proposal (RFP) in Q3 2025. The administrator selected through this RFP will manage the unified successor plan, consolidating the existing three equity market data plans into a more streamlined and efficient system [1].

Meanwhile, in the EU, industry stakeholders including financial institutions like Northern Trust, Finbourne Technology, and Propellant Digital are actively involved in initiatives to create consolidated tape solutions. The EU Bond Consolidated Tape Tender was awarded in mid-2025, with bodies like AFME supporting public-private collaboration frameworks to facilitate this process. This initiative aligns with broader fintech ecosystem growth ambitions by fostering improved real-time data access, which can drive innovation and efficiency in trading and risk management for bonds [2].

The collaboration among Northern Trust, Finbourne Technology, and Propellant Digital exemplifies the fintech ecosystem’s role in harnessing advanced technology to create unified data platforms, improving transparency and reducing fragmentation in bond markets. These collaborations leverage each firm's strengths: Northern Trust’s asset servicing and custody capabilities, Finbourne’s investment technology platform expertise, and Propellant’s digital marketplace innovations [2].

The Consolidated Tape will provide market participants and investors with a comprehensive overview of bond transactions, regardless of their resources and knowledge level. It is expected to create new business opportunities, as regulatory authorities hope that start-ups will develop around the Consolidated Tape, creating indices, evaluated pricing systems, transaction cost analyses, and new trading platforms for retail customers [2].

Data feed providers in the EU and UK are planning to offer a single programming interface (API) and attractive pricing models to foster the Fintech ecosystem created by the Consolidated Tape Project. Exchanges must transmit data to the Consolidated Tape Project, ensuring a complete and accurate data stream [2].

Other participants in the Consolidated Tape Project, such as Bondtape, are already providing similar data streams and are ready to move quickly in providing a data stream for the bond market. Bondtape has developed a prototype to efficiently check, harmonize, and distribute bond price data in real-time and has signed a contract with Amazon Web Services to conduct speed and reliability tests [2].

In addition to the U.S., the EU Consolidated Tape Project (fairCT) includes participants like Cboe Global Markets, FactSet, Google Cloud, Norges Bank Investment Management, TP ICAP, and UBS. Ediphy, a fintech company specializing in fixed-income securities, is also part of fairCT, along with Finbourne Technology and Propellant Digital, who are now focusing on the UK tape tender after being shortlisted for the EU tender [2].

According to Victoria Webster, Managing Director of Fixed Income at the Association of Financial Markets in Europe, the Consolidated Tape aims to improve price formation and discovery, and market integrity [2]. The development of the Consolidated Tape could potentially revolutionize the bond market and create new opportunities for businesses and investors.

Currently, accessing bond data involves complex licensing agreements, multiple pricing tiers, and various API models. However, with the Consolidated Tape, large institutional investors often outsource data collection and processing to a single usable data stream, simplifying the process and reducing costs. The Consolidated Tape Project, which combines real-time transaction data from bond trades, has gained full speed after a decade of slow progress.

In summary, the Consolidated Tape Project is a significant step towards modernizing market infrastructure, improving transparency, and fostering a fintech ecosystem in both the EU and UK bond markets. The collaboration between established financial institutions and fintech firms strengthens this potential by combining industry expertise with advanced technology solutions.

1. The fintech collaborations between Northern Trust, Finbourne Technology, and Propellant Digital in the EU are centered on developing consolidated tape solutions, leveraging their respective strengths in asset servicing, investment technology, and digital marketplace innovations.
2. The fintech ecosystem is anticipated to thrive with the arrival of the Consolidated Tape Project, as start-ups may emerge to create indices, evaluated pricing systems, transaction cost analyses, and new trading platforms for retail customers.
3. In the realm of finance and technology (fintech), the Consolidated Tape Project is on a mission to provide a unified, efficient, and transparent data system for the bond market in the EU and UK, potentially driving innovation and reducing fragmentation.

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