Cloud Transformation in Capital Markets: Trading, Risk, and Compliance at Scale

Capital markets are at a pivotal crossroads. The relentless pace of high-frequency trading, the complexity of global regulatory requirements, and the imperative for real-time risk management are reshaping the industry’s technology landscape. To remain competitive and compliant, capital markets firms are embracing cloud transformation—modernizing trading platforms, enhancing risk analytics, and automating compliance at scale. Publicis Sapient, in strategic partnership with AWS, is leading this evolution, helping clients unlock agility, resilience, and intelligence across their operations.

Legacy on-premises systems have long constrained capital markets firms. These environments often result in slow deployment cycles, limited scalability, and high operational costs—challenges that are magnified as trading volumes surge and regulatory scrutiny intensifies. Cloud-native solutions offer a compelling alternative, providing the flexibility, speed, and cost efficiency required to thrive in today’s dynamic markets.

Publicis Sapient’s SPEED framework—Strategy, Product, Experience, Engineering, and Data & AI—combined with AWS’s industry-leading cloud services, delivers a comprehensive approach to digital transformation. This partnership enables seamless migration of mission-critical workloads, modernization of trading and risk platforms, and the integration of advanced analytics and AI for real-time decision-making.

Trading platforms are the heartbeat of capital markets, demanding ultra-low latency, high availability, and the ability to process vast amounts of data in real time. Cloud transformation enables firms to:

• Accelerate Time-to-Market: Cloud-native architectures allow for rapid deployment of new features and swift response to market changes.
• Enhance Performance and Resiliency: Scalable infrastructure ensures high availability and robust disaster recovery, critical for uninterrupted trading operations.
• Optimize Costs: By eliminating legacy licensing and maintenance expenses, firms can reinvest in innovation and growth.
• Expand Global Reach: Modernized platforms can efficiently support operations across multiple countries and languages.

A leading global investment banking client, for example, partnered with Publicis Sapient to migrate their asset management web properties to AWS. The result: 20% cost optimization, 99% uptime SLA, and a 75%+ improvement in application performance and availability across 48 countries.

Effective risk management is foundational to capital markets. The ability to analyze vast datasets, model risk scenarios, and respond to emerging threats in real time is a competitive differentiator. Publicis Sapient leverages AWS’s advanced analytics and AI/ML services to help firms:

• Aggregate and Analyze Data: Cloud-native data platforms consolidate information from disparate sources, providing a unified view for risk analysis.
• Deliver Real-Time Insights: AI-driven analytics empower firms to make informed decisions quickly across market, credit, and operational risk.
• Enable Proactive Monitoring: Robust monitoring and site reliability engineering (SRE) practices ensure early detection and resolution of potential issues, reducing operational risk.

By integrating AI and machine learning, capital markets firms can move from reactive to proactive risk management—identifying patterns, predicting exposures, and automating responses at scale.

Regulatory compliance is a moving target in capital markets, with new rules and reporting requirements emerging regularly. Cloud transformation provides the agility and transparency needed to adapt quickly:

• Automated Compliance Workflows: Cloud-native solutions automate data collection, reporting, and audit trails, reducing manual effort and error.
• Data Security and Privacy: AWS’s robust security framework, combined with Publicis Sapient’s governance expertise, ensures compliance with global regulations such as GDPR, MiFID II, and Dodd-Frank.
• Secure Collaboration and Data Sharing: Solutions like Publicis Sapient’s Unified Audience Accelerator enable privacy-compliant data collaboration across partners and jurisdictions, without exposing underlying data.

High-frequency trading (HFT) places unique demands on technology infrastructure. Ultra-low latency, deterministic performance, and the ability to scale instantly are non-negotiable. Cloud-native architectures, when engineered for HFT, provide:

• Elastic Compute and Storage: Instantly scale resources to match trading volumes and market volatility.
• Global Footprint: Deploy trading workloads close to major exchanges and liquidity centers, reducing latency.
• Advanced Monitoring: Real-time observability and automated failover ensure uninterrupted trading.

The integration of generative AI and advanced machine learning is reshaping capital markets. Publicis Sapient, recognized as a market leader in generative enterprise services, brings proprietary platforms like Bodhi and Sapient Slingshot to accelerate AI adoption. These tools, built on AWS, empower capital markets firms to:

• Automate complex workflows and streamline the software development lifecycle
• Enhance decision-making with real-time analytics and forecasting
• Personalize client experiences and optimize trading strategies

Publicis Sapient’s deep industry expertise is demonstrated through its work with leading financial institutions:

• Global Investment Firm: Migrated mission-critical workloads to AWS, achieving faster time-to-market, improved developer productivity, and significant cost savings. The firm now benefits from 99% uptime and a 75%+ boost in application performance.
• Trade Management Platform: Built a cloud-native reconciliation platform capable of reconciling 60-70 million transactions daily, with projections to reach 200 million. Automated break detection and real-time data ingestion have reduced operational risk and delivered immediate cost savings.
• Regulatory Reporting Transformation: Enabled a central data repository to adapt swiftly to new regulatory regimes, leveraging cloud-native infrastructure for real-time processing, validation, and storage of billions of records across multiple jurisdictions.

• Industry Recognition: Publicis Sapient is an AWS Premier Tier Services Partner and has achieved AWS Financial Services, Migration, and Generative AI Competencies, reflecting technical excellence and customer success.
• End-to-End Transformation: From strategy and migration to engineering and AI, Publicis Sapient delivers holistic solutions tailored to the unique needs of capital markets.
• Proven Methodology: The SPEED framework ensures every transformation is grounded in business value, operational excellence, and future readiness.

As capital markets continue to evolve, the need for agile, secure, and intelligent platforms is paramount. Publicis Sapient and AWS are uniquely positioned to help capital markets firms modernize trading, risk, and compliance—unlocking new opportunities for growth and innovation. Connect with our experts to start your cloud transformation journey and position your firm for success in the digital era.

Relevant Links

• Using Cloud as an Enabler in Asset Management
• Using Cloud as an Enabler in Asset Management
• Le cloud comme catalyseur de transformation pour la gestion d’actifs en Europe (Europe)
• Cloud Modernization in Wealth Management: Regional Challenges and Opportunities in Canada and the UK
• Modernizing Reconciliation and Data Integration for Asset Managers: Cloud-Native Approaches to Operational Efficiency and Compliance
• El cloud como catalizador de la transformación en la gestión de activos en América Latina (LATAM)