why xml? why fixml? why now? fia -- february 19, 2004

Why XML? Why FIXML?Why now?

FIA -- February 19, 2004

© Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. All rights reserved. 2

The Challenges Facing Us

•Achieve Straight-Through Processing

•Provide an API for all functions

•Support ever-increasing transaction volume

•Support ever-increasing business complexity

•Standardize across markets

• Increase developer productivity


Why Adopt Extensible Markup Language?

•XML is nothing more (or less) than an impossibly flexible method of formatting and describing data

• It's flexible because it's simple

•And it's powerful because it's flexible


What makes XML powerful?

•Data values can get as large as they need to be -- there's no inherent limit

If a field needs to expand, it simply expands. This is in stark contrast to the hassles associated

with positional-format records. This is a big part of removing legacy field-size

limitations in our industry.


What makes XML powerful? (part 2)

•New attributes and elements (analogous to fields and records) can simply be added whenever and wherever they're needed.

•Elements can contain elements with no limits on the number of levels of nesting.

Complex hierarchical data structures can simply be inserted as needed.

Programs that read the XML but have not yet been modified to take advantage of the new data, need not be affected.

No more searching for space on positional records or dealing with the hassles of creating new record types.

The structure of the XML matches the logical structure of the data.



•Numeric values can get as big (or as small) (or as negative) as they need to.

•Numeric values contain decimal points. No more hassles with assumed number of

decimal points. No more defining of decimal locators. No more truncation of numbers or forcing the use

of assumed trailing digits. No more hassles associated with reading

"packed" fields.



• It's plain text -- no more hassles associated with transfers across disparate ASCII/EBCDIC environments

• It compresses extremely well

•There's tremendous software support for it.

•Developer productivity can be dramatically improved.


Why adopt FIXML?

•FIX is already a widely used standard.

•CME in particular already uses FIX for the successful and widely adopted iLink electronic trading interface.

•The FIX Protocol Ltd. organization is open.

•FIX is adopted across numerous product spaces in the financial services industry.


CME's 3-part FIXML strategy

•Position Services

•Settlement Price File and other reference data

•Trade Management functions


Position Services (available now)

•Trade Register both on-demand and batch more flexible than the legacy format support real-time balancing processes

•Option exercise and abandonment instructions Now you can automate these

•Position adjustments Now you can automate these

•PCS support all product types including flex options


Settlement Price file etc. (coming soon)

•Provide integrated settlement prices across markets

• Include data such as open interest and volume

•Provide better reference data


Trade Management functions

•SLEDS (available today)

•Blocks (wholesale trades) and EFP's (and EFR's and EFS's) (coming soon)

Two-sided submission Allow give-ups Feed them through GAINS

why xml? why fixml? why now? fia -- february 19, 2004

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