Symbolic Representation of Securities Trade Settlement Messages Applying the Principles of Formal Languages for Business Communication

The increased use of network communications within industries,and among firms, suppliers, and customers, isfocusing greater attention on the methods and standardsfor interorganizational communications. In the securitiesindushy, the settlement and clearing of trades dependson numerous messages to be sent and received byseveral organizations. Using the principles of FormalLanguages for Business Communication (FLBC), we developa message representation that is flexible and self-describing,and show how defeasible reasoning appliedto settlement messages could handle problem trades.This application of FLBC offers advantages throughmachine-to-machine error reconcilement, integrationwith other market communications systems, and robustnessto changes in securities design and regulation