The encyclopedia · Software & IT · Technical decision · 1992–1998
FIX became trading's standard by removing Salomon Brothers from its name
Two firms built a spec, then renamed it so competitors would adopt it; years later it was the market's messaging standard.
Salomon Brothers · Fidelity · Goldman Sachs · Putnam
the move
In the early days of electronic trading, buy-side and sell-side firms passed execution reports and indications of interest by phone and paper. Salomon Brothers and Fidelity built a protocol, then called it SBX, to automate that exchange.
When they invited Goldman Sachs and Putnam, someone pointed out that the Salomon name would block adoption. They renamed it the Financial Information Exchange Protocol. The first public spec, FIX 2.7, was released in 1995 with 103 fields and equities support.
why it works
- Neutral naming removed the adopter's fear of using a rival's tool.
- Publishing the spec publicly meant any firm could implement it without licensing or permission.
- Once it spread in equities, new trading venues adopted FIX to make onboarding brokers easy.
- A shared language killed the exploding cost of custom integrations between every pair of counterparties.
what transfers
If you want a standard to spread, give up naming it after yourself; neutral ownership is the price of adoption.
what came after
FIX became the de facto messaging standard for pre-trade and trade communication across equities, fixed income, derivatives and forex. The 2020 spec grew to 168 messages and 7,868 fields, and the standard now supports order workflow, market data and post-trade processing.
references
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