SIRCA

SIRCA is an Australian not-for-profit organisation that provides online services, data infrastructure, and research support for finance and other data-intensive fields. Its principal role has been to make financial-market information available to universities, public-sector organisations, and participants in financial markets for research, analysis, education, risk management, and related activities. The organisation was incorporated in 1997 as a company limited by guarantee and began by hosting and managing share-price data from the Australian Securities Exchange for a small group of collaborating Australian universities. This founding model placed SIRCA between academic research and the financial-data industry: it provided a shared technical and organisational platform through which institutions could access datasets that would otherwise be costly or difficult to collect, standardise, and maintain individually. During its early years, SIRCA worked with the ASX and other research partners on studies concerning managed-fund performance, market benchmarking, market integrity, and identity fraud. These projects illustrated the organisation’s broader purpose: applying structured financial and transaction data to questions of market behaviour, public policy, institutional performance, and financial-system integrity. One identity-fraud study prepared for the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, known as AUSTRAC, estimated the scale of identity fraud in Australia at approximately A$1.1 billion. SIRCA’s activities have extended beyond the provision of raw datasets. In partnership with the Australian Financial Markets Association, it produces the Australian Financial Markets Report, an annual publication covering major Australian market segments, including equities, futures, bonds, and over-the-counter securities. The report is intended to provide consolidated statistics and a broad view of activity across Australia’s financial markets. SIRCA technology has also supported the Thomson Reuters Tick History database. This historical market-data resource is used by financial institutions and researchers for applications such as back-testing trading algorithms, studying market behaviour, and performing risk and compliance analysis. SIRCA’s role in this area reflects its emphasis on high-volume, time-sensitive financial data rather than on consumer-facing financial products. According to the cited reference material, SIRCA serves more than 50 universities, including 37 member universities in Australia and New Zealand and more than 20 institutions in North America, Europe, and Asia. Its governance is overseen by a board of directors and an executive, while its legal form is a registered not-for-profit company limited by guarantee under Australian corporate regulation. SIRCA is therefore best understood as a specialist research and data-services organisation rather than a listed financial company, exchange, broker, or conventional software brand.

SIRCA was established in Australia in 1997 as a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee. Its initial purpose was to provide a shared service for a small group of Australian universities that needed access to Australian Securities Exchange share-price data. Instead of requiring each institution to build its own collection, storage, and delivery systems, SIRCA created a central capability for hosting and managing the information. The organisation’s early work developed through cooperation with the ASX and other research partners. Its projects applied market and administrative data to questions relevant to investors, regulators, public agencies, and academic researchers. These included an ASIC-related review of research on managed-fund performance in 2002, an ASX-SIRCA benchmarking study in 2003, and a 2004 study on the importance of market integrity. SIRCA was also associated with a 2003 report for AUSTRAC on identity fraud in Australia, which estimated the problem at about A$1.1 billion. Over time, SIRCA expanded from a university-focused Australian data service into an international provider of online research infrastructure. The cited reference describes a user base of more than 50 universities: 37 member universities in Australia and New Zealand, together with more than 20 institutions in North America, Europe, and Asia. This expansion reflects demand for reliable historical financial data in empirical finance, market microstructure, quantitative research, education, and public-policy analysis. A significant part of SIRCA’s service portfolio has involved collaboration and data publication. In partnership with the Australian Financial Markets Association, it produces the Australian Financial Markets Report. The report brings together statistics on Australian equities, futures, bonds, and over-the-counter securities, offering a consolidated view of activity across market segments. The reference material states that these markets collectively recorded more than A$125 trillion in turnover during the 2011–12 period; this figure describes the markets covered by the report, not SIRCA’s revenue or assets. SIRCA’s technical capabilities have also underpinned the Thomson Reuters Tick History database. Historical tick and end-of-day data can be used to investigate past market conditions, test automated-trading strategies, evaluate models, and support risk and compliance processes. This role places SIRCA within the specialist financial-information and research-infrastructure sector, alongside organisations that curate, standardise, and distribute data for professional and academic use. Governance is provided through a board of directors and an executive structure. SIRCA is registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission as a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee. Publicly cited material does not identify a private parent company, stock-market listing, controlling owner, or named current executives. Its institutional identity is consequently that of an independent, mission-oriented data and research-services organisation rather than a conventional commercial consumer brand.

• 2004

  Market-integrity study

  [1]SIRCAen.wikipedia.org

  SIRCA was involved in research examining the importance of integrity in financial markets.

• 2003

  ASX-SIRCA benchmarking study

  [1]SIRCAen.wikipedia.org

  SIRCA collaborated with the ASX on a benchmarking study using financial-market information.

• 2003

  Identity-fraud research for AUSTRAC

  [1]SIRCAen.wikipedia.org

  A report prepared for AUSTRAC estimated identity fraud in Australia at approximately A$1.1 billion.

• 2002

  Managed-fund performance review

  [1]SIRCAen.wikipedia.org

  SIRCA participated in research connected with an ASIC review of evidence concerning the historical performance of managed funds.

• 1997

  SIRCA incorporated

  [1]SIRCAen.wikipedia.org

  SIRCA was formed as an Australian not-for-profit company to host and manage ASX share-price data for collaborating universities.

SIRCA positions itself as shared research and data infrastructure connecting academic institutions, government, and financial-market participants. Its distinctive value lies in organising and delivering historical and market-wide financial data for empirical research, market analysis, algorithm testing, risk work, compliance, and policy-oriented studies.

• Market research and statistics

  Australian Financial Markets Report

  An annual report produced by SIRCA in partnership with the Australian Financial Markets Association. It consolidates coverage and statistics for major Australian financial-market segments, including equities, futures, bonds, and over-the-counter securities. The offering is designed to provide researchers, institutions, and market observers with a broad reference point for understanding market activity rather than a retail investment product.

• Research data infrastructure · 1997

  SIRCA financial-market data services

  Online services that host, manage, and provide access to financial-market datasets for universities, government-related users, and financial-market participants. The services support academic research, empirical finance, market analysis, education, and other data-intensive work. Public reference material does not provide a complete catalogue of individual databases or current product names.

• Historical market-data infrastructure

  Technology supporting Thomson Reuters Tick History

  SIRCA technology has supported the Thomson Reuters Tick History database, which provides historical tick and end-of-day market data. The data is used by financial institutions and researchers for back-testing algorithmic trading strategies, analysing past market conditions, and performing risk and compliance-related work.

• 1997

  Create shared university financial-data infrastructureStrategy

  Background

  A small group of Australian universities needed a common way to host and manage ASX share-price data for research.

  Action taken

  SIRCA was incorporated as a not-for-profit company to provide centralised data-management and online research services.

  Aftermath

  The organisation later expanded its university and institutional service base internationally and broadened its work into market reports and large-scale historical data infrastructure.

  Source

1. 1SIRCAen.wikipedia.org
2. 2SIRCA official websitesirca.org.au