Algorithmics and Bloomberg unveil Algo Risk Application version 1.6 at the Algo Credit Conference in Vienna

Toronto, Canada - November 12, 2004 -

Algorithmics Incorporated, an international leader in enterprise risk management solutions, and Bloomberg LP, a leading global news and information organization, today announced the release of version 1.6 at the Algo Credit Conference in Vienna. "This latest version of Algo Risk has powerful features that enable individual users to customize user interfaces to their unique requirements," says Andy Aziz, Vice-President of Buy-Side Solutions at Algorithmics. "Traders, portfolio managers and risk managers within organizations have differing business needs and preferences, and we developed version 1.6 in response to user feedback for more individual choice and control over the way information is interactively displayed, processed and analyzed."

Algo Risk version 1.6 includes the following features:

  • Custom Interface - As part of continued efforts to deliver an intuitive and functional interface that can be customized, users can now remove and re-order sections and tabs to create a front end that caters to their specific needs. New reporting components have also been added to enhance the information display. Users can visually assess the riskiness of their portfolio through Heat Map and Output Meter displays.
  • Advanced risk analytics - As part of continued efforts to strengthen analytics, risk analytics are now more transparent and enable users to see underlying computations. Users can decompose tracking error into asset allocation, security selection and interaction impacts. Similarly, VaR analysis is split into interest rate, equity and foreign exchange components to provide users with more comprehensive and insightful analytical tools. Hedge fund users can also benefit with analytics such as NAV, Beta adjusted NAV, Net Market Exposure, etc. when assessing their portfolio risk.
  • User-defined scenarios - Users have greater control over scenarios and can now make specific changes to the shape of an interest rate curve. This feature allows users to interactively create additional curve shift scenarios and dynamically assess the impact these changes have on their portfolios.
  • Historical Reporting through Time - Historical reporting enables users to recall stored historical risk and P&L data to conduct backtesting and performance analysis that allows them to compare the actual performance over time of a portfolio or instrument to expected results.
  • Advanced hard-copy reports - Users can print and export report views in PDF formats that enable them to customize font type and size as well as paper size and layout. This provides users with greater flexibility when generating hard-copy reports.  Product coverage - Product coverage continues to be expanded and version 1.6 now includes more derivative products such as options, swaption, etc. and more comprehensive coverage of mortgage and asset-backed securities.

About Algo Risk
Algo Risk is an advanced market and trading risk solution that delivers users of the Bloomberg Professional® service direct access to pre-integrated risk management capabilities provided by Algorithmics. As a pre-packaged solution, Algo Risk offers reduced cost of ownership and rapid implementation. The application delivers access to risk information and interactive decision support that bridges the traditional gaps between the front and middle office by leveraging the a common sophisticated risk engine. Algo Risk covers a variety of instrument classes including futures, forwards, swaps, callable/puttable/convertible bonds together with more traditional product types such as government and corporate bonds, equities and currencies.

Algo Risk 1.6/2
Altogether, Algo Risk simulates over 250,000 instruments every day under thousands of historical, Monte-Carlo and stress-test scenarios. Through Algo Risk, risk and portfolio managers alike can generate a number of advanced risk reports ranging from stress-tests, to value-at-risk, and tracking error. Algorithmics' advanced analytics and distributed processing technology has been fully integrated into Bloomberg's reliable, 24/7/365 infrastructure. As such, the combined system leverages the secure, high performance Bloomberg network to deliver real-time, interactive risk reporting.

About Bloomberg LP
Bloomberg is a global news and information organization. The Company provides economic and financial information to the business community, in addition to supplying various news outlets. Bloomberg has forged a unique position within the financial services industry by providing an unparalleled range of features in a single package, the Bloomberg Professional® service. By addressing the demand for investment performance and efficiency through an exceptional combination of information, analytic, electronic trading, and Straight Through Processing tools, Bloomberg has built a worldwide customer base of corporations, issuers, financial intermediaries, and institutional investors. Bloomberg media includes global news, television, radio, Internet, and magazine and book publishing operations with 1,700 reporters and editors in 94 bureaus worldwide. For more information please visit www.bloomberg.com.

About Algorithmics
Algorithmics Incorporated is the leading provider of enterprise risk management solutions that enable financial institutions to effectively understand and manage their financial risk. Algorithmics' clients include more than 150 of the world's leading financial institutions. Its Algo Suite of enterprise risk management solutions are in use in 31 countries by over 50 of the 100 largest financial institutions in the world.

©2004 Algorithmics Incorporated. All rights reserved. ALGORITHMICS, ALGO SUITE, MARK-TO-FUTURE, MtF and the Ai logo are trademarks of Algorithmics Incorporated and/or its affiliates.

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Heather Smith
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