Secure Consolidated Exchange Feed for Order Entry and Market Data

Abstract

The disclosed embodiments relate to communication of financial messages from an Exchange to market participants whereby messages directed to particular market participants may be consolidated with other messages directed to all market participants and communicated via the same communications medium while preserving the anonymity of those market participants to which messages are particularly directed. Accordingly, redundant communications are eliminated, reducing the overall volume of communicated data and the resources necessary in support thereof; inhibition of any one market participant intentionally or unintentionally influencing the market via exposure of their activities, or otherwise unfairly impinging on the exposed activities of other market participants, is maintained; and inequitable information access is eliminated as the consolidated messages are transmitted to all market participants substantially simultaneously over the same medium thereby minimizing or eliminating any advantage or opportunity one market participant may have to receive market information ahead of the other market participants.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A computer implemented method comprising:
 generating, by a processor, a first identifier and allocating the first identifier to a first participant of a plurality of participants, the allocation of the first identifier to the first participant being discernible thereby and not by any other of the plurality of participants, and further the inclusion of the first identifier as being in a same allocation with other identifiers allocated to the first participant not being discernible by any of the other participants;   generating, by the processor, a first message responsive to a first request message previously received by the processor from the first participant, the first message including data representative of information to be received and comprehended by the plurality of participants, the first message generated to be identified by the first participant of the plurality of participants as being associated therewith and responsive to the first request message, the other participants of the plurality of participants being unable to identify the first participant or the association of the first message therewith from the first message;   augmenting, by the processor, the first message with the first identifier, the first identifier not having been used to augment a previous message responsive to a previous request message received from the first participant, that indicates that the data representative of the information of the first message is responsive to the first request message, the indication that the data representative of the information is responsive to the first request message being discernible by the first participant but not discernible by other participants of the plurality of participants, the data representative of the information of the augmented first message being discernible by both the first participant and the others of the plurality of participants; and   transmitting, by the processor via a network, the augmented first message to the plurality of participants in lieu of transmitting a second message responsive to the first request message only to the first participant.   
     
     
         2 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  where the first request message includes the first identifier, the generating further comprising obtaining the first identifier from the first request message. 
     
     
         3 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  where the first request message comprises a trade order, trade modification, trade cancellation, or combination thereof, and the first message comprises a confirmation message, update message, rejection message, or combination thereof. 
     
     
         4 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  where the augmenting further comprises selecting, by the processor, the first identifier from a first plurality of identifiers previously allocated to the first participant, each of the first plurality of identifiers being unique at least among the first plurality of identifiers, the allocation of each of the first plurality of identifiers to the first participant being discernible thereby and not by any of the other participants, and further the inclusion of each of the first plurality of identifiers as being in the same allocation being not discernible from any other of the first plurality of identifiers by any of the other participants. 
     
     
         5 . The computer implemented method of  claim 4  where, prior to the transmitting, providing the allocated first plurality of identifiers to the first participant. 
     
     
         6 . The computer implemented method of  claim 4  where the first plurality of identifiers are randomly generated, the first plurality of identifiers are randomly allocated, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         7 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  where the first identifier is used by the first participant to characterize the first message with respect to the first request. 
     
     
         8 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  where the first request further includes an encryption key, the augmenting further comprising encrypting data identifying the first participant, the first request or a combination thereof using the encryption key, the first identifier comprising the encrypted data. 
     
     
         9 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  where the first request further includes an encryption key, the augmenting further comprising encrypting additional data specific to the first participant, the first request or a combination thereof and augmenting the first message with the encrypted additional data in addition to the first identifier. 
     
     
         10 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  further comprising augmenting a second message of the plurality of messages with a second identifier having no association to any of the plurality of participants and unique to the second message among at least the plurality of messages, each of the plurality of participants lacking information indicating a lack of association of the second identifier to any of the other of the participants, the association of the first identifier with the first participant being further obfuscated thereby. 
     
     
         11 . A system comprising:
 a processor and a memory coupled therewith;   first logic stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the processor to generate a first identifier and allocate the first identifier to a first participant of a plurality of participants, the allocation of the first identifier to the first participant being discernible thereby and not by any other of the plurality of participants, and further the inclusion of the first identifier as being in a same allocation with other identifiers allocated to the first participant not being discernible by any of the other participants;   the first logic being further executable by the processor to cause the processor to generate a first message responsive to a first request message previously received by the processor from the first participant, the first message including data representative of information to be received and comprehended by the plurality of participants, the first message generated to be identified by the first participant of the plurality of participants as being associated therewith and responsive to the first request message, the other participants of the plurality of participants being unable to identify the first participant or the association of the first message therewith from the first message, and augment the first message with the first identifier, the first identifier not having been used to augment a previous message responsive to a previous request message received from the first participant, that indicates that the data representative of the information of the first message is responsive to the first request message, the indication that the data representative of the information is responsive to the first request message being discernible by the first participant but not discernible by other participants of the plurality of participants, the data representative of the information of the augmented first message being discernible by both the first participant and the others of the plurality of participants; and   second logic stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the processor to transmit, via a network, the augmented first message to the plurality of participants in lieu of transmitting a second message responsive to the first request message only to the first participant.   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11  where the first request message includes the first identifier, the generating further comprising obtaining the first identifier from the first request message. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 11  where the first request message comprises a trade order, trade modification, trade cancellation, or combination thereof, and the first message comprises a confirmation message, update message, rejection message, or combination thereof. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 11  where the first logic is further executable by the processor to cause the processor to select the first identifier from a first plurality of identifiers previously allocated to the first participant, each of the first plurality of identifiers being unique at least among the first plurality of identifiers, the allocation of each of the first plurality of identifiers to the first participant being discernible thereby and not by any of the other participants, and further the inclusion of each of the first plurality of identifiers as being in the same allocation being not discernible from any other of the first plurality of identifiers by any of the other participants. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14  where, prior to the transmission of the augmented first message, the first logic is further executable by the processor to cause the processor to provide the allocated first plurality of identifiers to the first participant. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 14  where the first plurality of identifiers are randomly generated, the first plurality of identifiers are randomly allocated, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 11  where the first identifier is used by the first participant to characterize the first message with respect to the first request. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 11  where the first request further includes an encryption key, the first logic is further executable by the processor to cause the processor to encrypt data identifying the first participant, the first request or a combination thereof using the encryption key, the first identifier comprising the encrypted data. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 11  where the first request further includes an encryption key, the first logic is further executable by the processor to cause the processor to encrypt additional data specific to the first participant, the first request or a combination thereof and augment the first message with the encrypted additional data in addition to the first identifier. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 11  where the first logic is further executable by the processor to cause the processor to augment a second message of the plurality of messages with a second identifier having no association to any of the plurality of participants and unique to the second message among at least the plurality of messages, each of the plurality of participants lacking information indicating a lack of association of the second identifier to any of the other of the participants, the association of the first identifier with the first participant being further obfuscated thereby. 
     
     
         21 . A non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon that causes the computer to:
 generate a first identifier and allocate the first identifier to a first participant of a plurality of participants, the allocation of the first identifier to the first participant being discernible thereby and not by any other of the plurality of participants, and further the inclusion of the first identifier as being in a same allocation with other identifiers allocated to the first participant not being discernible by any of the other participants;   generate a first message responsive to a first request message previously received by the processor from the first participant, the first message including data representative of information to be received and comprehended by the plurality of participants, the first message generated to be identified by the first participant of the plurality of participants as being associated therewith and responsive to the first request message, the other participants of the plurality of participants being unable to identify the first participant or the association of the first message therewith from the first message, and augment the first message with the first identifier, the first identifier not having been used to augment a previous message responsive to a previous request message received from the first participant, that indicates that the data representative of the information of the first message is responsive to the first request message, the indication that the data representative of the information is responsive to the first request message being discernible by the first participant but not discernible by other participants of the plurality of participants, the data representative of the information of the augmented first message being discernible by both the first participant and the others of the plurality of participants; and   transmit, via a network, the augmented first message to the plurality of participants in lieu of transmitting a second message responsive to the first request message only to the first participant.