Q&A with KX and Microsoft Azure
Earlier this year, FD Technologies announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership agreement with Microsoft to expand the reach of its KX Insights streaming data analytics platform as more organizations look to modernize their data infrastructure for real-time decision-making. Firstly, KX Insights will be embedded natively on the Microsoft Azure platform as a first class service, with KX generating revenue based on consumption. Secondly, KX has agreed to work with Microsoft to target new applications and services that will accelerate innovation and growth for organizations in the financial services sector.
What is the KX Insights Platform?
KX Insights is our integrated data management and streaming analytics platform for real-time decision-making. It has been built to seamlessly integrate into today’s evolving data landscape; to ingest, store, manage, analyze and visualize enormous amounts of dynamic data, whether on-premise, in the cloud, or at the edge.
Firmly established in the financial services industry, KX is also growing rapidly in industries including manufacturing, automotive, F1 racing, telecom, and utilities. As businesses grapple with the ever-expanding volume and types of data they are turning to KX to help them understand and use this data to inform critical decisions where speed and latency matter.
Why did Microsoft select KX?
The KX Insights platform delivers industry-leading, real-time streaming analytics solutions that transform how firms derive insights from market data. Combining the full range of Microsoft’s Intelligent Cloud capabilities with KX technology and expertise, the partnership will empower customers with new, compelling solutions for faster decision-making and innovation.
Why is this partnership important for KX?
This is a landmark agreement for KX, with significant strategic benefits supporting our growth ambitions. Microsoft has publicly stated that KX Insights is the premier real-time analytics solution available on Azure and KX Insights will be the first third-party streaming analytics solution to be natively integrated within Azure. This means the KX Insights platform will become one of only a small number of third-party vendors natively integrated into Azure, opening cross-industry opportunities for customers to quickly adopt KX’s leading real-time analytics platform.
Microsoft will also work with KX to develop new technology solutions and services aimed at addressing the demands of capital markets and extend its total addressable market.
What is the market opportunity?
We believe the market opportunity is considerable, for both parties. KX and Microsoft are seeing rapidly increasing demand across all industry sectors for real-time analytics solutions that can efficiently and effectively leverage both streaming and historical data to drive real-time business-critical decisions.
A recently published Forrester TEI Study, commissioned by KX shows that organizations implementing KX can expect to see a 315% ROI in as little as three months. According to research firm MarketsandMarkets, the streaming analytics market is expected to grow from USD 15.4 billion in 2021 to USD 50.1 billion by 2026, at a CAGR of 26.5%. This forecasted growth is backed up by KX’s recent research that shows 80% of companies surveyed have seen their revenues increase after implementing real-time analytics.
Microsoft Azure is therefore well-positioned to address this clear market opportunity. Upon implementation, it will be the second-largest cloud infrastructure platform globally with customers including more than 95% of the Fortune 500 and KX will become one of a small number of vendors to have its software natively available on the Azure platform as a first-party service.
How will this partnership benefit KX customers?
KX Insights on Azure is designed for ease of deployment and commercial adoption. It will enable customers to boost productivity, providing significant cost reductions over legacy systems and allowing customers to draw down on their committed Azure spend.
Azure on KX Insights will deliver impressive ROI for customers and enable them to store and access their data using complex event processing, high-speed analytics, and machine learning interfaces on one unified and easy-to-use platform. Tightly integrated within Microsoft’s intelligent cloud ecosystem, the platform will work seamlessly with Azure services.
What does the future of the KX and Azure partnership look like?
KX intends to work with Microsoft to develop applications and services, leveraging KX’s capabilities as the world’s fastest time-series database as a core component. This collaboration aims to help the capital markets ecosystem including exchanges, buy-side firms and sell-side institutions, create high-value insights that facilitate real-time decision-making.
Seamus Keating, CEO of FD Technologies, said: “This strategic partnership with Microsoft accelerates our mission to enable organisations to drive value from their real-time data assets. Enterprises will benefit from the unrivalled performance, scalability and security of KX Insights optimised for Microsoft Azure. In addition, we are excited to partner with Microsoft in developing technology solutions that address the demanding requirements of financial services organisations, particularly in capital markets where KX has a market-leading position. This is a landmark agreement for KX, with significant strategic benefits supporting our growth ambitions.”
Bill Borden, Corporate Vice President of Worldwide Financial Services at Microsoft said: “KX Insights delivers industry leading, real-time streaming analytics solutions that transform how firms derive insights from market data. Combining the full range of Microsoft’s Intelligent Cloud capabilities with KX technology and expertise, we look forward to empowering our capital markets and financial services customers with new, compelling solutions for faster decision-making and innovation.”
About FD Technologies
FD Technologies is a group of data-driven businesses that unlock the value of insight, hindsight and foresight to drive organizations forward. The Group comprises KX, the leading technology for real-time continuous intelligence; First Derivative, which provides technology-led services in capital markets; and MRP, the only enterprise-class, predictive Accounts Based Marketing solution. FD Technologies operates from 15 offices across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific, and employs more than 3,000 people worldwide.
