CAPIS and STP Launch Outsourced Trading and Operations Model for Buy-Side Firms

WHY THIS MATTERS

The buy-side is currently facing a significant margin squeeze driven by rising operational costs and increased regulatory pressure. Historically, investment managers have had to stitch together disparate vendors for trade execution and back-office processing, which often creates fragmented workflows and data silos. This partnership addresses a growing demand for integrated, front-to-back infrastructure.

By merging CAPIS’s execution capabilities with STP’s operational tools, the firms remove the friction that usually exists between trade execution and settlement. For emerging managers, this provides institutional-grade infrastructure that allows them to focus on alpha generation. For established firms, it offers a modular way to achieve scale without the fixed-cost burden of internal expansion.

STP Investment Services (STP), a global provider of technology-enabled investment operations, fund administration, and compliance solutions, and CAPIS, an institutional brokerage firm that provides outsourced and supplemental trading services, today announced a strategic partnership to launch a coordinated outsourced model that integrates trade execution and investment operations support for buy-side firms.

As firms look to scale without expanding internal trading and operations teams, the traditional divide between outsourced trading and middle-office support is disappearing. Through this partnership, investment managers can access CAPIS’ outsourced or supplemental trading capabilities alongside STP’s tech-enabled investment operations outsourcing, creating a seamless experience across the entire trade lifecycle.

Together, STP and CAPIS will provide investment managers, ranging from emerging managers to established institutional firms, with a coordinated solution designed to enhance operational efficiency, improve business continuity, and support long-term strategic growth.

“Buy-side firms don’t want more vendors, they want integrated infrastructure,” said Jeff Hooks, Senior Vice President at STP Investment Services. “By partnering with CAPIS, we’re able to present a flexible, packaged solution that allows firms to outsource as much or as little as they need, whether that’s execution support, trade settlements, reconciliations, or broader middle-office functions. Our teams have already demonstrated how effectively we can work together behind the scenes to deliver a streamlined experience for clients.”

The partnership builds on a successful collaboration supporting a mutual investment manager client. In that engagement, STP and CAPIS worked closely to align data feeds and file structures so trading data could move efficiently into downstream operational workflows. By coordinating file formats, required data fields, and system requirements, the two firms reduced manual intervention and eliminated the need for the client to reconcile outputs between separate providers. The result was reduced operational friction, faster downstream processing, and a more scalable operating model.

“We’re thrilled to partner with STP as we look to further streamline the trading lifecycle for our clients,” said Chris Hurley, SVP and Head of Institutional Sales at CAPIS. “By combining CAPIS’ proven trade execution and commission management services with STP’s middle- and back-office expertise, we’re offering clients a seamless experience that reduces complexity, strengthens oversight, and ensures that execution and post-trade processes move in lockstep.”

To shared clients, CAPIS will provide outsourced and supplemental trading services designed to function as an extension of a client’s trading desk. Investment managers may choose to outsource a discrete portion of their trading activity, use CAPIS as a contingency or overflow solution, or fully outsource execution depending on their business model. CAPIS supports global equities, fixed income, and derivatives trading, and brings extensive commission management expertise, including support for client commission arrangements and broker-vote objectives. Its ARC solution is designed to eliminate trade rotation for WRAP and SMA platforms by incorporating those orders into the primary block, with the goal of improving execution consistency and reducing performance disparity.

Additionally, STP will deliver tech-enabled middle-office and investment operations outsourcing solutions that integrate with clients’ existing systems. Through its BluePrint platform and experienced operations teams, STP supports a broad range of functions, including reconciliation, trade settlements, performance measurement, corporate actions and pricing, portfolio accounting, client reporting, fee billing, and compliance services. Its flexible outsourcing model allows firms to leverage STP’s technology, personnel, or a combination of both, transforming middle-office operations into a scalable infrastructure designed to support growth.

FF NEWS TAKE

The industry is moving away from best-of-breed individual tools toward integrated ecosystems, and this collaboration is a prime example. By dissolving the traditional wall between the trading desk and the middle office, these firms are responding to a reality where efficiency is a survival requirement. The focus on a successful pilot suggests the technical plumbing is already being addressed to ensure data moves seamlessly between platforms.

However, the challenge for any integrated model remains vendor lock-in and the complexity of migrating legacy systems. While one-stop-shop models simplify vendor management, firms must ensure that the tech stack remains flexible enough to adapt to changing global regulations. This is a measured step that reflects a broader shift toward controlled, real-world testing in the fintech space.

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