Centroid Solutions

CRISTIAN VLASCEANU

CEO of Centroid Solutions

Q It’s been a long time since you were last in Game Changers, what’s new with Centroid Solutions?

Thank you, Paul, for having me at Game Changers again. Yes, it’s been a while and we have been working very hard to achieve our goals and plans for the year, release features across both our products and keep up with all our customers’ requirements. We have seen great interest from customers regarding our solutions and in fact we have recently published our customer increase statistics for the first half of the year, which show that all our solutions are very well received.

Additionally, we have been extremely focused on our efforts to expand our multi-asset connectivity and functionality, with many integrations to exchanges and market data providers, giving our broker clients extra options to expand their liquidity and product offerings.

Last but not least, we have been fortunate to establish several partnerships over the last months, which allow us to better assist our clients and to further promote our brand.

Q You have always been known as someone who travels around the globe to see old and new clients alike. Are you back to travelling and going to events?

Yes, I consider face to face meetings very important, and I enjoy travelling to see our existing and new clients. I have been keen to be able to do so again, I am happy it is now possible and look forward to seeing everyone soon.

There are several upcoming industry events that the team and I will be attending and exhibiting at, starting with the Forex Expo in Dubai, which will be held by the time this interview is out (on 29th – 30th September) and in October, we shall be back in Europe, to exhibit at iFX International Expo in Cyprus (between 5th – 6th October). Toward the middle of November (16th – 17th November), we will hopefully be able to travel to the UK, to exhibit at the Finance Magnates London Summit.

At every event, we hope to meet new and old friends, clients, and partners from the industry, to share our knowledge and hopefully strike new partnerships as well. It is something I am really looking forward to, and we encourage everyone to come see us at our booths and reach out to us to meet.

Q I saw in the news that you signed a collaboration with IG Prime. Are you now making traction in the elusive prime market that all tech providers strive to get into?

Yes, certainly. The prime market has always been a focus for us, and we feel we are making good traction here. At the same time, as our systems evolve so do the requirements of our existing customers, which continue to grow and expand their business into different segments. We always aim to ensure that our technology enables business expansion and gives the ability for established and growing players to capture additional market share.

Q It must have felt like a huge validation for all your hard work, but also for your technology when you signed this collaboration. Do you feel like it has given your brand the respect it rightfully deserves?

Absolutely, we believe that every step taken over the last years has been in the right direction, building and following the path and vision we have set for the company, and we have worked very hard to create our brand and reputation, associated with a certain level of quality and standards. I believe our products have become quite well known within our target audience, and we have primarily our customers and partners to thank for that. Of course, such proven collaborations give us huge satisfactions and motivation to challenge ourselves and do even better in the future.

Q For the readers who are from a prime background, what sets your tech apart?

We have added to the systems the right blend of functionality, spanning from flexible liquidity and price composition, support and connectivity for multiple asset classes, flexible trading functionality and strategies, complex risk management capabilities, pre-trade margin engine, accounts back office and reporting, books and records, institutional web trading UI, stress testing and market impact engines, performance dashboards, and so on. Such a comprehensive set of functionalities, configurable and customizable, combined together within a single solution is what makes us stand out and gives us the ability to meet the requirements of customers in the prime space.

Q Is it more aimed at institutional, or can your tech also be used for a retail brokerage?

Our technology is available to brokers of any size, whether you are a startup broker, a multi-asset broker, with one or multiple trading platforms, API trading offerings, etc. Our system can accommodate. For example, our Centroid Gateways aggregation engine is a flexible and scalable solution, including all the tools that can facilitate a startup broker to grow to become an institutional large size broker. Additionally, in the context of our industry’s ever changing trading landscape, all the features that we are constantly adding, based on our customers’ feedback and our own insight, are made available across our entire customer base.

Q Is it a challenge to have technology that is all things to all market segments, is it best to focus on one or the other?

It is definitely a challenge trying to cater to multiple market segments within the same product, as requirements can vary greatly. However, it really depends on the structure of the systems and how flexible they have been designed in order to be able to accommodate functionality that is necessary for each market segments. It would certainly be easier to just have products dedicated each for a specific market however the big upside of having everything within one unified solution is that it gives the ability for brokers to expand their business outside their initial market focus, from a centralized and uniform system, rather than having to deploy and manage multiple solutions in parallel.

Q You have been an industry leader in your field for a long time now, what tips would you give to aspiring CEOs reading this article?

I usually refrain from giving such advice as I believe I still have a lot to learn. What I know though is that in order to be able to build a scalable, successful and fast-growing operation, the foundation and structure are most important. Having the right structure, and the right team by your side are an absolute must and a lot of focus must be put on this at the very beginning. With this solidly in place you can gain momentum and achieve more in a shorter period of time later. Putting emphasis and understanding each part and aspect of a business is also critical and this insight allows companies to adapt to changes quickly and stay relevant in a fast-changing market as we see today.

Q By the time this issue comes out we will have the iFX Expo about to take place. Will Centroid be attending?

Yes, we will be there, exhibiting at booth 26. Anyone who is interested in our solutions and want to discuss business opportunities and partnerships can meet us at our booth or contact us at sales@centroidsol.com, to schedule a dedicated meeting with us.