Author: Invast Global

Former Rugby Australia elite coaching director Rod Kafer has traded in the tracksuits for actual suits for his new role at disruptor investment bank Invast Global.

The former Wallaby left his job at Rugby Australia in April this year before switching to the heady world of finance.

He wasn’t “even contemplating it”, but a meeting with Invast Global’s chief executive Gavin White changed that.

“We literally met for lunch, and he said ‘if you want to do it, let’s do it’, and I said, ‘I’ll start in two weeks time’. It’s those great moments in life where it’s almost spur of the moment, let’s do it, let’s have a challenge,” he said.

“I’ve loved my time in rugby, it’s such a wonderful thing to be involved with. And I had a real specific role at Rugby Australia. And, at the end of it, I didn’t actually feel like I could make too big a difference there … it didn’t provide me the opportunity that perhaps I thought it would.”

This article was originally published in The Australian Financial Review: https://www.afr.com/wealth/investing/former-wallaby-rod-kafer-joins-invast-global-20190909-p52peq

Invast Global has been steadily gaining industry accolades for an innovative, technology-focused approach to prime services. Today the firm’s growth enters a new phase with the announcement of the launch of a subsidiary company based in the Chinese Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong.

The new firm, Invast Global (Hong Kong) Ltd, will execute a strategic plan to concentrate on Asia focused institutional clients by utilising a comprehensive array of SFC licence types to provide an alternative to the traditional bank-based prime services offerings. The Hong Kong expansion will also act as a conduit for future strategic partnerships in the region.

Marcus Fung – Chief Executive Officer (Hong Kong)

Whilst itself a part of the larger, JASDAQ-listed Invast Securities group, Invast Global has forged an enviable reputation in the institutional brokerage industry since launching operations from their Sydney headquarters in 2012.

Over the past six years, Invast Global has been studiously exploiting the growing vacuum created as traditional Investment Banks curb many of their business lines in response to increasingly restrictive global regulatory reforms. The milestones have been accumulating fast for the entrepreneurial firm, with its institutional client base growing strongly worldwide and a particularly strong penetration into the hedge fund space.

The company has been the recipient of numerous highly-respected industry awards, often prevailing over much larger, globally renowned Investment Banks. Notably, Invast Global has gained a reputation for being at the forefront of new technology, winning honours for innovation, whilst maintaining a human, flexible and client-centric approach.

“We are incredibly proud of our achievements in building a globally-respected, technology-focused, yet service oriented and high-touch specialist investment bank.“ says Invast Global CEO, Gavin White. “We believe demand for alternatives to the traditional global investment bank offerings will continue to accelerate over the coming decades, as scheduled regulatory reforms take effect and outdated, legacy technology systems continue to constrain the ability of the banks to evolve and compete”.

Appointed to oversee the establishment of the new subsidiary and manage the ongoing business of the Hong Kong entity is Mr Marcus Fung. Born in Guangzhou, but raised and educated in Hong Kong, Mr Fung’s appointment is revealing of the future aspirations of the firm. A multi-lingual technology specialist, Fung holds a bachelor’s degree in Physics from the Tokyo Institute of Technology – one of Japan’s most esteemed educational institutions. Prior to this, Mr Fung was awarded a prestigious Japanese Government scholarship to study Japanese language at the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies.

Mr Fung is a dynamic advocate of the need to provide services that utilise cutting-edge technological innovations, demonstrated by his commitment to provide his firm’s global hedge fund and broker clients with unique analytical services by employing powerful data science techniques.

“Our service is about providing efficient, cost-effective connectivity to liquidity and execution venues, combined with data and analysis. We then communicate our findings to the client in the quickest, most concise and practical way. Finding the best and most appropriate liquidity, designing the best execution techniques, providing the most efficient, most bespoke and responsive ancillary services. Without proper analysis and advice on these factors, our clients are in danger of slipping behind. This is a real problem for small/medium and emerging firms, but it is a problem we are focused on solving” notes Fung.

“I am very excited about the opportunities open to us in Hong Kong and throughout the region. We intend to build upon the successes of our Sydney-based headquarters to create a service that inspires our clients.” states Fung.

“Hong Kong is a hotbed of start-up and emerging hedge funds and brokerages. There is an incredibly dynamic and exciting industry in Hong Kong, which we look forward to serving in our trademark, responsive and high-tech way.” adds White.

Invast Global and Rugby Australia today announced that the multi-asset prime broker company will continue its support for the Qantas Australian Women’s Sevens team for the upcoming HSBC Sevens Women’s World Series campaign.

Invast Global’s logo will be adorned upon the shorts of the Aussie Sevens Women’s side as they make their charge in an Olympic Qualification year for HSBC Sevens World Series.

Rugby Australia Chief Commercial Officer, Cameron Murray said: “We’re very proud to be continuing the partnership between Invast Global and our Qantas Australian Women’s Sevens squad.

“The partnership comes in a crucial year for Rugby Sevens and it is a credit to Invast Global that they are excited to partner with one of the flagship Rugby Sevens sides globally, our Aussie Women’s Sevens team.

“The HSBC Sevens World Series continues to grow as a spectacle across the world, allowing Invast to further take their brand to a global audience.”

Invast Global CEO, Gavin White said: “We’re honoured to be an official partner of the Australian Women’s Sevens Rugby team for 2019.

“The team is succeeding at an elite global level – and at Invast Global we aspire to do the same. Importantly, the team represents the values of equality, integrity and dedication to excellence that Invast Global also epitomises.

“Like Rugby Australia, Invast Global is a champion of diversity with 40 staff, comprising 16 different nationalities, serving clients in over 50 countries.

“We wish the team the very best of luck for the 2019 season. Our staff – and our clients from all over the world – will be cheering loudly from the sidelines at each tournament.”

The Qantas Australian Women’s Sevens squad will play in the round two of the series at the HSBC Dubai Sevens, kicking off tonight.

Australia will face England, China and the USA in the battle for Pool B with all matches to be broadcast LIVE through World Rugby’s Digital Channels. The Finals on Friday will be broadcast LIVE on FOX SPORTS.

Head Coach John Manenti has named two debutants in the squad in Lily Dick and Sariah Paki, following on from Australia’s victory at the Oceania Sevens in Fiji earlier this month.

Qantas Australian Women’s Sevens Fixtures, Dubai
Thursday November 29
Australia v England, 7.44pm AEDT
Australia v China, 10.40pm AEDT
Friday 30 November
Australia v USA, 1.59am AEDT

Leading boutique prime broker, Invast Global, has today signed and issued a Statement of Commitment to the FX Global Code of Conduct. The announcement comes shortly after the firm was officially voted in as an institutional member of the Australian Financial Markets Association (AFMA).

The Australian Financial Markets Association (AFMA) was formed in 1986. Today AFMA is the principal industry association promoting efficiency, integrity and professionalism in Australia’s financial markets – including the capital, credit, derivatives, foreign exchange and other specialist markets.

The Invast Global Management team receives their Certificate of Membership from Mark McCarthy of AFMA

 

According to the Global Foreign Exchange Committee, an official forum of international central banks and private sector market participants, the purpose of the Global Code is to promote a robust, fair, liquid, open, and appropriately transparent market in which a diverse set of market participants, supported by resilient infrastructure, are able to confidently and effectively transact at competitive prices that reflect available market information. The Code was developed through a partnership between central banks and market participants from 16 jurisdictions around the globe.

Invast Global has demonstrated strong support for the concept and spirit of the FX Global Code of Conduct since it was established in May 2017.

As a STP non-bank prime broker, Invast Global transparently passes pricing and execution from their pool of bank and non-bank liquidity providers (LPs) through to their broker and hedge fund clients. Invast Global has declared a committed to protecting the interests of its clients above all else.

On July 18th 2017, Invast Global hosted an exclusive event in Sydney to promote the FX Global Code. Dr Guy Debelle, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, who has been the leading visionary and main architect of the Global Code was the special guest speaker.

Gavin White, Chief Executive Officer of Invast Global, stated, “a fair, transparent and robust market is a central tenet of a strong and progressive industry. Clients of all sizes need to be able to rely on it. It’s not something we should simply aspire to, it is essential. Invast Global is proud to be taking a leadership role in keeping the FX Global Code of Conduct at front of mind amongst industry participants. We look forward to working closely with AFMA and the Global Foreign Exchange Committees in future. Our clients can rest assured that fairness and transparency are values that Invast Global has been built around and which we commit to upholding going forward. ”

 

Leading boutique prime broker, Invast Global, is proud to announce the launch of a Tokyo oneZero Hub in TY3. This development follows on from the unveiling of the Invast LD4 oneZero Hub only three weeks ago.

The addition of the TY3 Hub means that clients around the world can now seamlessly connect to the award-winning liquidity of Invast Global in NY4, LD4 and TY3 for FX, Metals, Index CFDs and Commodity CFDs.

According to Invast Global, the recent series of announcements highlighting a closer relationship between the prime broker and oneZero is a precursor to a major upcoming announcement regarding the launch of a comprehensive liquidity offering, targeted at Retail brokers offering the MT5 platform, encompassing global exchange-connected liquidity for single-stock CFDs and futures CFD. Such an offering would be unique in providing MT5 brokers with global multi-asset capabilities and a more sophisticated offering for their retail clients.

“The addition of the TY3 Hub signals our commitment to delivering the highest quality liquidity to our institutional clientele not just in Tokyo but throughout Asia. This is a very exciting development and we look forward to assisting clients throughout Asia optimise their execution experience through low-latency cross connected solutions into the new oneZero Hub. Stay tuned for more to come.” – James Alexander, Chief Commercial Officer, Invast Global.

Invast Global, which is backed by listed Japanese parent, Invast Securities Co., offers multi-asset liquidity to retail brokers, hedge funds, proprietary trading firms and banks around the world. With multiple tier-1 prime broking relationships and access to bespoke clearing venues, Invast Global delivers transparent pre- and post-trade access to approximately 20 bank, non-bank and ECN liquidity providers. The Invast Liquidity team works closely with their clients to ensure the liquidity mix is optimised to suit their client’s trading and execution style.

Andrew Ralich, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of oneZero Financial stated “The recent and rapid expansion of our institutional distribution capabilities in cooperation with Invast Global is a testament to the agility of both teams within the evolving liquidity marketplace. This latest step into TY3 extends the partnership into a key area of demand within our client base. oneZero has made significant investments in AsiaPac over the last year, and we have identified institutional liquidity distribution direct from TY3 as a pivotal beachhead for the evolving region.”

About Invast Global
Winner of HedgeWeek’s Global Award: Best Specialist Prime Broker in both 2017 and 2018, Invast Global is a leading multi-asset brokerage and prime services provider based in Sydney, Australia. The company specialises in providing prime services to small/mid-sized hedge funds, asset managers, proprietary trading firms, other brokerages and banks. The JASDAQ-listed Japanese parent company – Invast Securities Co. has a 60-year history as a Forex and Securities brokerage and enjoys stable, long-standing relationships with numerous tier-one bank Prime Brokers.

Website: www.invast.com.au
Phone: +61 2 9083 1333
Email: primeservices@invast.com.au

About oneZero Financial
oneZero Financial Systems, LLC designs and develops institutional software solutions for the foreign exchange, commodities, and futures markets. The company offers bridging, aggregation, risk management, prime brokerage, regulatory reporting, and liquidity distribution solutions. oneZero serves global brokers, funds, banks, and other financial and commodity market participants worldwide. oneZero Financial Systems, LLC was founded in 2009 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts with additional offices in London, United Kingdom, Limassol, Cyprus, Singapore and Australia.

Website: http://www.onezero.com/
Phone: +1 888 703 4285
Email: info.us@onezero.com

m-FINANCE, one of the most popular technology providers for the forex, CFDs and bullion markets, has announced that it has signed a new liquidity partnership deal. The company will be delivering access to Invast Global’s pool following up on increasing demand for straight-through processing (STP) of orders.

The Asian market has typically been a destination where heavy b-booking of trades is a common practice. Following increasing demand from brokers to address the needs for a solution that can accommodate different types of clients, m-FINANCE has been offering to its broker customers ways to hedge their exposure by switching the flow from some clients to STP.

Commenting on the partnership deal, the CEO of m-FINANCE, Dick Tam, said: “We have been in this market for over 15 years and have a very strong presence within the Asia trading community. Being able to offer our brokerage clients a choice of market-leading liquidity which delivers the premium trading experience with institutional level spreads, fast execution, low latency trading environment and better depth of market is essential.”

“The Invast Liquidity Team works closely with their clients to ensure the liquidity mix is optimized to suit their client’s trading and execution style. We are glad that we can work closely with Gavin and Wendy and their professional team to offer our clients the best liquidity service,” Mr. Tam added.

The mix of clients from the Asian region has been shifting as traders are becoming more educated about their options. With some STP brokers making a push in the region, the need to accommodate different types of clients is becoming more pronounced.