Overview

Each month, Atlantis firms review their unsettled trades (from all previous months) and action them accordingly during the settlement cycle (aka settlement month). Within each settlement cycle there is a deadline for Receiver actions (Receiving Party's Deadline) and a deadline for Payer actions (Paying Party's Deadline). Trades must be Affirmed by the Receiver Participant before the Receiving Party's Deadline and Approved by the Payer Participant before the Paying Party's Deadline. At the end of the settlement cycle, all trades that have been affirmed and approved before the respective deadlines will settle. Trades actioned after their respective deadlines (either Receiver or Payer) will be pushed to the next settlement cycle.

The settlement cycle close occurs the first business day after the Paying Party's Deadline, at which point trades are marked as settled in Atlantis and settlement records are updated in the Daily Digest files. Final Settlement, Final Trade, and Banking Reports* are also created at this time, which Atlantis firms can use to confirm their total Paying Party's payment amount and Receiving Party's credit amount for the settlement cycle and fund their bank accounts accordingly. 

Each Paying Party has 3 business days after Settlement Cycle Close to fund their accounts with their total payable amounts for the current settlement cycle. On the Paying Party's Payment Date, FIA Tech initiates payment processing for the current settlement cycle. A settlement cycle completes 5 days later when Receiving Party’s credit amounts are processed on the Receiving Party's Processing Date.  Please note that any Banking Currency Holidays may cause some slight variation to this standard timeline. 

*For a full list of Atlantis Reports please see the Reports section of our Atlantis Help Desk website

Settlement Cycle Countdown Counter

To assist firms in meeting the Receiving and Paying Party's Deadline, there is a Settlement Cycle Countdown Counter visible in Atlantis. This Counter provides a countdown toward both the Receiving Party's Deadline and the Paying Party's Deadline. As the deadline nears, the Counter changes color to reflect urgency (refer below screenshot and table). By clicking on the Counter, firms can view the full Brokerage Settlement Processing Schedule for the year (explained in next section). 

2023 Brokerage Settlement Processing Schedule

1. Trade Month– Trades made in listed month (or earlier) are eligible to settle in the subsequently listed Settlement Month
2. Settlement Month– Also known as Settlement Cycle, the actual month in which trades from previously listed Trade Month (and earlier) are eligible to settle
3. Receiving Party's Deadline – Receiver has until 10 PM EST/EDT (UTC-5/UTC-4) of listed date to affirm all trades that they desire to settle in current Settlement Month
4. Paying Party's Deadline – Payer has until 10 PM EST/EDT (UTC-5/UTC-4) of listed date to approve all trades that they desire to settle in current Settlement Month
5. End-of-Cycle Final Invoice Issued – FIA Tech provides report to each firm detailing what they settled in current Settlement Month (broken out by counter-party, exchange, Payer Party's Payment Amount and Receive Party's Payment Amount) in Atlantis Notifications
6. Paying Party's Payment Date – Date by when Payer accounts must submit amounts owed to FIA Tech for the amount they owe to Receivers for current Settlement Month.
7. Receiving Party's Credit Date – Date by when FIA Tech processes payouts to Receiver accounts for the amount owed to them by Payers for current Settlement Month.