Thomson Reuters, the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals, has introduced its next-generation desktop product for financial professionals in the Middle East at a launch event in the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building.
The event was attended by His Excellency Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister for Economy, who launched Thomson Reuters Eikon by pressing on a large computer mouse.
Thomson Reuters Eikon (pronounced "icon") is the latest component of the company's bold innovation agenda that redefines how financial professionals work by placing the most comprehensive market information, news, analytics and trading tools available into a desktop as simple to use and collaborative as the Internet.
Thomson Reuters Eikon provides financial professionals with new tools to thrive in a new era. It follows the launch of Reuters Insider, an interactive on-demand video platform that premiered in May. The highly innovative Reuters Insider multimedia service is a key part of the Eikon experience, offering a totally new way of consuming professional video news on-demand and fully contextualised within the desktop.
As of today about 23 partners and financial institutions have signed up for Thomson Reuters Eikon from the Middle East and Africa region and more than 70 customers are in the process of placing orders.
Throughout the region the response has been unprecedented with customers in UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait being some of the first to take advantage of the new benefits that Thomson Reuters Eikon will provide to their customers.
Top clients from the Middle East & Africa region were actively involved in comprehensive product testing and improvements as per the needs of the domestic markets. This testing took place at financial institutions based in Dubai, Sharjah, Beirut, Johannesburg and Lagos.
Additionally, users across the region can benefit from the Knowledge Network, a new offering from Thomson Reuters that brings together innovative multimedia learning methods to enhance the Thomson Reuters Eikon experience. Clients receive immediate and interactive live training through Knowledge Live with expert and specialist trainers.
"The Middle East is fast becoming a powerful economic bloc due to its geographic position which facilitates trading between the Western and Far Eastern markets. This combined with increased globalization and a greater correlation between markets and asset classes means that the need for information that is accessible and reliable is more vital than ever," said Basil Moftah, Global Head of Rapidly Developing Economies, Thomson Reuters.
"The messaging and publishing capabilities within Thomson Reuters Eikon make it unlike anything else available in our industry today," Moftah added.
Thomson Reuters Eikon with its intuitive experience provides information into easy-to-use web style search, aggregates the best of social networking technology and allows for seamless mobile interchange from the office, home or while on the move. Eikon is available on multiple computer platforms, Blackberry and iPhone devices with a single sign-on to access information anywhere, anytime.
A core innovation of Thomson Reuters Eikon is the harnessing of social networking technology for financial markets and the ability to collaborate with financial professionals around the globe in creating valuable communities. With the tools to publish views or ideas to targeted groups and share real-time rich content and analysis with colleagues and market counterparts, financial professionals can build relationships and grow their business.
To complete the trading cycle, Thomson Reuters Eikon seamlessly links to some of the world's deepest pools of foreign exchange, equities, fixed income and trading venues such as Tradeweb, with easy-click trade capabilities so that market professionals can act in real-time.
Dubai's Armani Hotel, within the iconic Burj Khalifa, provided the backdrop for the "Thomson Reuters Eikon Go Live" event which showcased Thomson Reuters Eikon as well as a number of important consumer innovations that demonstrate some of today's best technology.
