EquiLend Makes Power Move: Snaps Up Trading Apps to Dominate Fintech Arena
Wall Street's sleeping giant just woke up hungry. EquiLend—the $2 trillion securities lending backbone—just acquired a suite of trading apps in a play that could reshape how institutions trade.
Why this matters now
While crypto exchanges battle retail traders, EquiLend's targeting the big money. Their new tech stack lets hedge funds execute billion-dollar block trades faster than a DeFi frontrunner—with none of the regulatory headaches.
The cynical take
Because nothing says innovation like traditional finance buying startups instead of building in-house. At least they didn't slap blockchain on the press release this time.
has expanded its capabilities as a global leader in securities finance with the acquisition of , a front-office technology provider known for its automation tools and modular trading solutions used by many of the world’s leading securities finance desks.
The acquisition aligns with EquiLend’s broader strategy to streamline the entire securities finance ecosystem – from front-office through post-trade – by embedding automation and flexibility at every stage. By integrating Trading Apps’ solutions, EquiLend expands its capabilities and offers clients tools that can be used independently or integrated with existing services.
Trading Apps offers a suite of innovative tools that enhance trading efficiency and automation across the securities finance ecosystem. Among its flagship offerings, the Lender and Borrower Apps are designed to automate front-office workflows, maximize execution speed, and accelerate trade flows. These tools help with identifying short positions, negotiating rates, and optimizing returns, while reducing manual workload, increasing trade volume capacity, and providing traders more control over lending and borrowing decisions.
TA.Link, Trading Apps’ trade messaging service, is also part of the acquisition and will serve as the resiliency solution for EquiLend’s NGT platform. The service will continue to operate independently, with no shared infrastructure or dependencies – a deliberate design choice to ensure redundancy and operational stability.
“This acquisition enhances our ability to deliver even greater value to our clients by accelerating automation across the EquiLend platform,” said ,. “The Trading Apps team has built high-quality tools that help firms MOVE faster and operate more efficiently. Integrating these capabilities into the EquiLend platform will provide our clients with a broader set of solutions to fit their securities finance needs. We are excited to work with Matthew Harrison and the Trading Apps team to build on their strong foundation and drive the next wave of securities finance innovation together.”
“This marks an exciting evolution for our team,” said of . “By becoming part of EquiLend, we’re bringing together complementary strengths and setting the stage for what the next generation of securities finance technology will look like.”
“The acquisition of Trading Apps significantly advances our strategy to deliver a unified, front-to-back platform for the securities finance industry,” said ,. “By combining EquiLend’s scale with Trading Apps’ strengths in workflow automation, we’re providing our clients a more intelligent, connected, and agile infrastructure solution.”
Source: EquiLend
