Citadel and REDI Integrate OMS with EMS

The lines between an order management system (OMS) and an execution management system (EMS) continue to blur, as REDI and Citadel are partnering to integrate the two systems.

The partnership aims to create an end-to-end solution for the buy side with a seamless workflow across the trade lifecycle, leveraging Citadel’s OMS with REDI’s EMS in one solution.

“The trader will not know the difference between an OMS window and an EMS window. It all works together,” explains Rishi Nangalia, CEO of REDI. “REDI is a collection of windows that make a workspace. The Citadel OMS will reside and be embedded within that workspace, and all the windows will communicate whether they are native or they are from the partner.”

In July, REDI was spun off from Goldman Sachs into an independent company owned by a consortium of investors, including Citadel. As a result of the spinoff, REDI now operates as a broker-neutral EMS and on an open-vendor basis, meaning that the system can pull in technology from outside sources, such as Citadel, rather than relying on REDI’s proprietary technology.

“Obviously REDI could take the angle and claim that we will go and buy [an OMS] or build one ourselves, but when we saw the Citadel platform, we were extremely impressed,” says Nangalia. “[So] we did a proof of concept to integrate the two platforms, taking again the view that if you build an open, collaborative platform, you can get the best of every technology from various other companies together rather than trying to say everything has to be built here.”

While both Citadel and REDI hope to add value from each other, the partnership is not an exclusive relationship.

“And that goes back to my theme of being open,” says Nangalia. “This notion of garden walls and exclusive relationships is in my mind a little bit old school. I think that by keeping it open and hoping that the other industry players actually raise their game as well, [it] allows us to make a better platform.”