About FIX Protocol and its owner
 The Financial Information EXchange Protocol (FIX Protocol) is an electronic communication protocol, developed for automated real-time message exchange among business partners across the globe. owns and maintains the FIX Protocol and makes it available in the public domain as an open and free communication standard for communication of pre-trade, trade and post-trade messages across all instrument types and without compromising the security and integrity of the data.
Who designed FIX Protocol
Since its inception in 1992 as a bilateral communications framework for equity trading between Fidelity Investments and Salomon Brothers, the FIX Protocol has now become the de-facto messaging standard globally. It supports Straight Through Processing (STP) of all types of assets from Indication of Interest (IOI) to allocations and confirmations. Collaborative efforts of banks, brokers, dealers, exchanges, industry associations, institutional investors and information technology providers from around the world have enriched the FIX Protocol in terms of support for all asset types and flexibility in implementation.
FIX is neither software nor a communication protocol for connectivity
FIX is not software; it is an open and free set of specifications, around which the developers develop open source or commercial software for their requirements. FIX Protocol is independent of any specific communications protocol (like X.25, TCP/IP etc.) or physical medium (copper, fiber, satellite etc.) chosen for electronic data delivery.
Flexible implementation
Rather than implementing the whole protocol, the organizations can implement FIX specifications relevant to them, do customizations and transact their business in a cost-efficient, transparent, electronic and timely manner. The protocol functions at two levels session and application. The session level establishes, maintains and terminates the connection between the parties using Admin Messages and recovers lost messages. The application level deals with the business related contents. A typical FIX implementation, called FIX Engine, automates the session level tasks and allows the trading users concentrate on core aspects of the business. Depending on their organization's needs, the software developers can enhance the FIX Engine functionalities with message analysis tools and algorithmic trading at the application level.
Integration with existing trading applications
Software developers can integrate the FIX specifications with the existing trading application of their organization, allowing the trading users continue trading without knowing the FIX Protocol and yet benefit from all advantages of the protocol.
Who uses FIX?
Both sides of financial markets, the Buy-side (financial institutions) and the Sell-side (brokers/dealers), extensively use the FIX Protocol. Virtually every major exchange and investment bank with electronic trading as well as many global mutual funds, fund managers, investment firms, brokers and ECNs use the FIX Protocol for their business.
Benefits using FIX
General benefits
- Financial organizations accepting FIX Protocol automatically bring in the experience of Order Management System providers, system vendors, integrators and developers, who have a deep knowledge of supporting FIX on the equity side of the business.
- The dependencies on brokers and proprietary solutions reduce. By embracing FIX, users leverage open standards embraced by the Bond Market Association and global fixed income communities for multiple security classes.
- Users can easily respond to changing customer and market demands with the flexibility and customizability of the FIX Protocol. The FIX Protocol allows trading with a vast number of clients and even with clients, who are not fully FIX compliant.
- Enables STP
- Reduces costs on phone calls and fax messages and increases the processing speed, allowing traders to concentrate on their core task of trading
- A matured and proven technology through collaborative efforts of all types of market players across all instrument types, that relieves the users from the worries of buying immature and untested technology.
- FIX scales easily with growth of implementing organization, handling increased trade volumes.
- The FIX Protocol expands as required, making it possible to deal with additional asset classes such as futures, options, fixed income, foreign exchange and more.
- FIX specifications ensure secure and reliable connections and protect users from system downtime and lost revenue.
Benefits to dealers
- Increased efficiency by freeing up valuable time otherwise used to communicate price and execution data and by allowing for greater focus on complex trading issues, which that require client interaction, market colors and commentary
- Costs associated with manual errors in the trade entry, execution and post trade processes reduce due to a seamless integration of various order management applications with the FIX Engine.
- Improved and transparent broadcasting of price information enables efficient monitoring of market liquidity
Benefits to sales traders
- A trader can continue speaking with dealers via the telephone and email for complex trading issues that require market color and commentary. Concurrently a trader can communicate information like side, quantity, issue, price etc electronically, reducing possibilities of human errors.
- Traders can concentrate on order execution rather than on reporting an order status. The seamless and real-time communication of execution data throughout the day keeps the dealer constantly updated with their order status.
- Traders can accept or reject the manual changes by dealers automatically through their Order Management Systems.
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