Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch Execs Work on Standards For Delivery of Portfolio Models

The standards are designed to minimize risk and reduce costs for participants.

Executives from Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and other top Wall Street firms are joining a special task force set up by the Money Management Institute (MMI) to oversee the creation of an industry standard for the delivery of portfolio models by investment managers and overlay portfolio managers to program sponsors.

When in place, these standards will help minimize risk, create a more efficient operating environment, and reduce costs for industry participants, the MMI said in a statement.

The newly formed task force includes Jason Ainsworth from Neuberger Berman, Ann Bergin from The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, William Broderick from Edward Jones, William Golden of Legg Mason, Patty Loepker at Wells Fargo Advisors, Gene Mulligan at Merrill Lynch, Roger Paradiso at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (Task Force Chairman) and Joseph Schultz of Goldman Sachs.

In addition to monitoring progress and providing better communication regarding industry-wide initiatives, the task force is also charged with ensuring that there is sufficient participation in the model standards project among the MMI membership and offering whatever support is needed to help the committee reach its objectives.

To date, the board-level task force has reviewed the committee structure and has prioritized the objectives for the three sub-committees on reporting, model maintenance and trading. It is in the process of establishing a regular reporting system, time lines, and deliverables for each subcommittee.

“We have an opportunity as an industry to put in place standards for the delivery of models, and the board-level task force is focused on making that a reality,” said task force chairman Roger Paradiso, managing director and chief investment officer of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Private Portfolio Group.

“This is a project that everyone in the industry is getting behind, and progress was accelerated when Merrill Lynch committed to joining the DTCC Model Management Xchange (MMX) and when DTCC and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney recently completed initial testing of the model standards ahead of the successful production release on May 18th.”

Melanie Rodier has worked as a print and broadcast journalist for over 10 years, covering business and finance, general news, and film trade news. Prior to joining Wall Street & Technology in April 2007, Melanie lived in Paris, where she worked for the International Herald ... View Full Bio