Insights
Whitepapers and
operating notes.
What we write here is what we have done. The structure of the work in the anonymized form our clients have approved for disclosure.
Whitepapers
Available on request.
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The $50 Billion Question: why market data costs keep rising, and the strategies that deliver durable savings.
Global spending on financial market data reached a record $49.2B in 2025 and, at the industry trend growth rate, will top $50B in 2026. The paper examines why renewal uplifts feel automatic, how vendors monetize systems, reach, outputs, and business success, and the moves that deliver durable savings without disrupting mission-critical access. It also frames AI's impact on market data management: new licensing categories for inference and machine-consumer use, and shifting demand as firms scale generative workloads.
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2026 Financial Market Data Audit Trends: how vendor & exchange enforcement is changing.
Market data vendor, stock exchange, and index audit activity jumped an estimated 40% in 2025. The paper lays out the trends shaping 2026 (broader scope, remote-first audits, 5+ year lookbacks, and use of unlicensed data to power AI tools) and a pragmatic preparation playbook that reduces audit duration, limits liability, and prevents repeat findings. AI is now a core input on both sides of the audit: vendors deploying it to detect unlicensed use, and firms using it to reconcile entitlements against actual consumption at scale.
Operating notes
Short, ungated, monthly.
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The exchange audit letter: the first two weeks decide the next six months.
Remote-first audits stretch from months to years, lookbacks run five-plus years, and interest on adjustments commonly accrues at 1.5% per month. Five moves in the first two weeks set the trajectory: read the audit clause before the questionnaire, appoint one point of contact, reconstruct the record, answer what was asked, and time-box the audit.
Case studies
What the work has produced.
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Transparency and control within four months of a major merger.
Inventory of the combined market data environment; consolidation of overlapping feeds and licenses; right-sized contracts negotiated with the renewal cycle.
Read the case study -
A unified operating model across three offices on three continents.
Global current-state assessment; unified target operating model satisfying business, technology, and regulatory demand; phase-one contract right-sizing based on actual usage.
Read the case study