User's area
Acumen News n°17
We have the pleasure to describe here a selection of the main enhancements performed in ACUMEN release 7.20 up to May 2008 (note that version 7.10 released end 2007 is only an internal version). It contains enhancements in all areas of ACUMEN coverage. Please contact us at if you wish to know more about these subjects, or if you wish to learn about all the changes performed on this new release.
New functions in deals
New Deal Type: Dual Currency Bonds
It is now possible to input in ACUMEN Bonds that pay interest and nominal in a different currency. For this purpose a new sub-mask "Dual Currency Bond" has been added to the "Bond" table. Once the two currencies have been defined at the static level, FX deals are created automatically at each cashflow date to convert the coupon amounts and reflect the exchange rate risk and valuation included in the structure. Fixings, payments and cashflows are also managed in the same way.
Initial break even rate
The field "Original Break Even" is now filled in for the different types of transactions. This rate displays the current market rate or price as at deal's creation date and time and is not re-calculated in case the deal is updated. It can then be used in reports to the Central Bank, showing the deal rate and the market rate at the time of dealing. This is especially useful for some IAS/IFRS reports.
Orders
Several enhancements have been brought to our Order management module, including:
- A function that automatically cancels orders that have not been executed 10 days after the maximum execution date;
- An enhancement of the links between client order, bank and market deals in order to easily view the related deals;
- New columns that have been added in the Order Management module to allow producing even clearer reports with more detailed information.
New reporting features
Filter function
LOGIN has developed in ACUMEN a similar function to the "Automatic filter" function of MS Excel. In the different ACUMEN modules it is now possible to filter the data according to whatever column of the module: by doing a right-click on the chosen column and selecting the "Filter" function. All records having the chosen value will be displayed. It allows, for example in the "Bond position" sub-module, selecting only the bonds which issuer has a particular activity by clicking on the column "Issuer activity".
Multiple Selection results
It is now possible to open the Selection module several times in parallel. So it is for example possible to open two or more selections on the Counterparty table, or to open one selection of counterparty and one selection of deals. The output is available for consultation, reporting and comparison of results on screen.
Interface Documentation
It is now possible to generate formatted interface documentation based on the XML output. Login has created special style sheets that allow defining a nice format, showing all details of the interface, and using a different format depending on the contents (different colour or font for SQL requests, constants, sub interfaces, etc). Please contact us for further information on how to produce this report and eventually change the report presentation.
Other enhancements
Portfolio Limits on Duration
It was already possible to define a deal limit in terms of duration called "Trading Limit"; it is now also possible to define a portfolio limit based on the duration of the portfolio. Depending on the user choice, an aggregate duration will be calculated on all deals, or only asset side or liability side. If the deal exceeds the portfolio limit, the user will be informed upon input.
List of Data
It is now possible to filter the list of static records displayed when a right-click "List" is performed in field having a combo box. It allows having user-defined lists in deal input, per user: for example, for the Sales Desk, only the corporate clients list will be displayed in the "Counterparty" list of deal input screen. This facility is available everywhere, on fields that are linked to lists (deal and static table).
ACUMEN in Spanish
It is now possible to have ACUMEN menus and messages appearing on screen in Spanish. So now, ACUMEN is available in English, French and Spanish. Specific set-up is required to be able to get these translated versions.