Fitch Solutions Acquires Stake in Structured Finance Analytics Provider

Business Wire,  May 7, 2008  

• E-mail
• Print
• Link

NEW YORK or LONDON -- Fitch Solutions has announced that it has acquired an equity stake in Portsmouth Financial Systems, a next generation provider of structured finance analytics.

Portsmouth Financial Systems has developed a cutting-edge software platform that supports the modeling and analysis of structured finance transactions, with products ranging from collateral-level analytics to cash flow modeling tools. The platform has been beta-tested with a number of investment banks, asset managers and hedge funds over the last several months. Production versions will be launched within the next few months and will be distributed via Fitch Solutions.

Fitch Group launched Fitch Solutions in January of this year to provide further separation of Fitch's analytical activities from its commercial activities and to provide a focused platform for the accelerated development of fixed income data and analytics solutions. "Fitch Solutions' investment in Portsmouth Financial Systems reaffirms our commitment to provide solutions that meet the evolving needs of investors and increase transparency in structured finance markets," said Gloria Aviotti, Group Managing Director and head of Fitch Solutions.

"Fitch is a natural home for structured finance analytics and an ideal partner for the continued development of our structured finance platform," said Michael Megliola, CEO of Portsmouth Financial Systems.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

About Fitch Solutions:

Fitch Solutions, a division of the Fitch Group, is the distribution channel for Fitch Ratings products, and focuses on the development of fixed-income products and services bringing to market a wide range of data, analytical tools and related services delivered through a variety of channels. Offerings include research, risk and performance analytics, structured finance workflow solutions, and pricing and valuation services, as well as Credit Advisory Services and Fitch Training.

Fitch Group also includes Fitch Ratings, a global rating agency dedicated to providing the world's credit markets with independent and prospective credit opinions, and Algorithmics, a leader in enterprise risk management solutions. Fitch Group is a majority-owned subsidiary of Fimalac, S.A. For additional information, please visit www.fitchsolutions.com, www.fitchratings.com, www.algorithmics.com, www.fitchtraining.com, and www.fimalac.com.

About Portsmouth Financial Systems:

Portsmouth Financial Systems (PFS) develops software, models transactions and provides data services for the structured finance markets. Founded in 2006 by Michael Megliola, a former bond trader, PFS is based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Fitch's rating definitions and the terms of use of such ratings are available on the agency's public site, www.fitchratings.com. Published ratings, criteria and methodologies are available from this site, at all times. Fitch's code of conduct, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, affiliate firewall, compliance and other relevant policies and procedures are also available from the 'Code of Conduct' section of this site.

COPYRIGHT 2008 Business Wire
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning