The Financial Information eXchange ("FIX") Protocol is a series of messaging specifications for the electronic communication of trade-related messages. It has been developed through the collaboration of banks, broker-dealers, exchanges, industry utilities and associations, institutional investors, and information technology providers from around the world. These market participants share a vision of a common, global language for the automated trading of financial instruments.
FIX is the industry-driven messaging standard that is changing the face of the global financial services sector, as firms use the protocol to transact in an electronic, transparent, cost efficient and timely manner. FIX is open and free, but it is not software. Rather, FIX is a specification around which software developers can create commercial or open-source software, as they see fit. As the market's leading trade-communications protocol, FIX is integral to many order management and trading systems. Yet, its power is unobtrusive, as users of these systems can benefit from FIX without knowing the language itself.
