Financial Services · Moraph software

Trade Reconstruction Repository

Rebuild the full story of any trade, from first conversation to execution

Overview

What you are buying

The Trade Reconstruction Repository links recorded calls, emails and chat messages to the orders and executions they relate to, so a trade can be reconstructed as one timeline. Compliance teams answer regulator requests, best execution reviews and internal investigations from a single record instead of searching several archives. Every link, search and export is logged, so the reconstruction itself can be evidenced.

The problem it solves

When a regulator or an internal review asks how a trade came about, firms have to assemble the answer from an order management system, a voice recording platform, an email archive and one or more chat archives, each with its own search, clock and identifiers. Analysts match timestamps and trader names by hand, and the result is a document that is hard to repeat and harder to defend. Best execution reviews suffer the same way: the execution data is easy to find, but the conversations that explain the decisions are not.

  • Communications and trade records sit in separate archives with no shared identifiers
  • Reconstructions are assembled by hand and are difficult to reproduce
  • Clock differences between systems make the order of events uncertain
  • Best execution reviews rarely include the conversations behind the decision

Who uses it

  • Compliance and surveillance teams at broker-dealers, investment firms and banks
  • Best execution committees and the analysts who support them
  • Legal and investigations teams responding to regulator requests
  • Records management teams who answer for retention and retrieval
  • Internal audit, who need to test that reconstructions are complete

Requirements it supports

MiFID II Article 16(7) and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/565 Article 76 (recording of communications)MiFID II Article 27 and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/565 Articles 64 to 66 (best execution)FCA Handbook COBS 11.8 (recording telephone conversations and electronic communications)CFTC Regulation 1.35 (records of commodity interest transactions)SEC Rule 17a-4 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934FINRA Rule 5310 (Best Execution and Interpositioning)

The product supports these requirements; meeting them remains your organization’s responsibility.

See how it works

A short walkthrough

Illustrative screens with fictional sample data. They show the workflow, not any client’s data or configuration, and the layout of the product itself differs. A live demonstration uses the product with sample data.

  1. Step 1

    The request list

    Requests from regulators, legal and internal reviews are logged with their scope, owner and the due date entered for them.

    RequestSourceScopeAssigneeDueStatus
    RQ-0412Regulator (fictional)Orders in Instrument X, sample weekAnalyst ADue in 3 daysIn progress
    RQ-0409Internal reviewTrader 2214, one dayAnalyst BNext weekAwaiting approval
    RQ-0405Best execution committeeSample of 40 ordersAnalyst ANext monthIn progress
    RQ-0398Legal (Matter 77, fictional)Client 50311, sample quarterAnalyst CDoneReleased
    Requests from regulators, legal and internal reviews are logged with their scope, owner and the due date entered for them.
  2. Step 2

    Suggested links

    Each suggested link between a communication and a trade shows why it was suggested, and waits for an analyst to confirm it.

    Order OR-881204 · Client 50311 · Buy 25,000 Instrument X

    Trader
    Trader 2214 (fictional)
    Order received
    09:41:07 UTC
    First fill
    09:44:52 UTC
    Suggested links
    4
    Confirmed links
    2

    Suggested link: call CL-55190

    • Participants: Trader 2214 and Client 50311 contact
    • Instrument X mentioned in transcript
    • Call ended 3 minutes before order received
    • !Recording source clock offset recorded: +2 seconds
    Each suggested link between a communication and a trade shows why it was suggested, and waits for an analyst to confirm it.
  3. Step 3

    The reconstruction timeline

    Confirmed communications and trade events appear in one timeline, in order, with each item's source.

    Reconstruction RC-1207 · Order OR-881204

    1. Chat message from client contact asking for a price in Instrument XChat archive
    2. Call between client contact and Trader 2214Voice recording
    3. Order received: buy 25,000Order management
    4. Order routed to Venue 3 (fictional)Execution management
    5. Fill 1 of 3 receivedExecution management
    6. Email confirmation sent to clientEmail archive
    Confirmed communications and trade events appear in one timeline, in order, with each item's source.
  4. Step 4

    A coverage gap

    Periods with trading but no recorded communications are flagged so the gap is explained rather than discovered later.

    TraderDeskPeriodOrdersCallsMessagesFlag
    Trader 2214Rates (fictional)Sample day 1382261None
    Trader 3108Credit (fictional)Sample day 117044No calls recorded
    Trader 1977Equities (fictional)Sample day 126140Chat source outage
    Trader 4420Rates (fictional)Sample day 19612None
    Periods with trading but no recorded communications are flagged so the gap is explained rather than discovered later.
  5. Step 5

    A best execution review

    Reviewers see the execution data with the client's instructions and the conversations behind the order, and record their judgment.

    Order OR-879650 · Sell 10,000 Instrument Y

    Client instruction
    Limit order, execute today
    Venue
    Venue 1 (fictional)
    Fills
    2
    Linked communications
    1 call, 2 chat messages
    Reviewer
    Best execution reviewer (fictional)

    Execution factors recorded

    • Price compared with the reference price at order time
    • Likelihood of execution given order size
    • Client instruction followed as recorded in chat
    • Venue choice explained in call transcript
    Reviewers see the execution data with the client's instructions and the conversations behind the order, and record their judgment.
  6. Step 6

    Approval and release

    A reviewer approves the reconstruction before it is exported, and the release is recorded.

    Reconstruction RC-1207 · Approval history

    1. Reconstruction built from request RQ-0412Compliance analyst
    2. Two suggested links rejected with reasonsCompliance analyst
    3. Clock offset noted on voice sourceCompliance analyst
    4. Submitted for reviewCompliance analyst
    5. ApprovedCompliance reviewer
    6. Package exported and released to legalCompliance reviewer
    A reviewer approves the reconstruction before it is exported, and the release is recorded.

Workflows

The principal workflows

  1. Ingest

    Orders, executions and communications arrive from your trading, recording and archiving systems, and are normalized to one timeline with recorded time sources.

    • Order and execution records arrive from your order and execution management systems
    • Call recordings and metadata arrive from your voice recording platform
    • Emails and chat messages arrive from your communications archive
    • Timestamps are normalized and the original time source kept with each record
    • Records that fail data checks are held for review rather than dropped
  2. Link

    Communications are matched to orders and executions by participant, instrument, client and time window, and each link shows the reason it was made.

    • Participants matched to traders, salespeople and clients through your directory
    • Instrument and client references found in message text and call transcripts
    • Candidate links scored and shown with the factors that support them
    • Analyst confirms, rejects or adds links, with a note
    • Confirmed links recorded with who made them and when
  3. Reconstruct

    A reconstruction brings together everything linked to a trade or a set of trades as one ordered timeline, ready for review and approval.

    • Reconstruction requested for an order, execution, trader, client or period
    • Linked calls, messages, orders and fills assembled in time order
    • Analyst reviews gaps and adds context notes
    • Reviewer approves the reconstruction before it is released
    • Approved package exported with its index and audit record
  4. Review best execution

    Best execution samples pull in the conversations and instructions behind each order, so reviewers can see how the execution factors were weighed.

    • Sample of orders drawn by venue, instrument, desk or client type
    • Execution data shown with the client instructions and related communications
    • Reviewer records whether the execution policy was followed
    • Exceptions sent to the desk supervisor for a response
    • Results summarized for the best execution committee

Roles and permissions

Who does what in the product

Each role below is a starting point. During implementation we set them up to match your teams, and every action anyone takes is recorded in the audit trail.

Compliance analyst

Compliance analyst, surveillance analyst, trade reconstruction analyst

Builds reconstructions for requests and reviews, deciding which communications belong to which trades.

Sees

  • Orders, executions and communications within the desks and periods they are assigned
  • Suggested links with the factors behind each one
  • Requests and reconstructions assigned to them
  • Gap flags for the traders and periods they are working on

Does

  • Requests reconstructions for an order, trader, client or period
  • Confirms, rejects or adds links between communications and trades, with a note
  • Reviews gaps and records what was found
  • Adds context notes to the timeline
  • Submits reconstructions for review

Cannot

  • Approve or release their own reconstruction
  • Place or release a legal hold
  • Change retention settings or identity mappings
Approvals
Every reconstruction they prepare is approved by a compliance reviewer before it is exported or released.
Notified about
Requests assigned to them, reconstructions returned with comments, and new data arriving for a period they are working on.

Compliance reviewer

Compliance manager, head of surveillance, senior compliance officer

Checks that reconstructions and review results are complete and supported before anything leaves the team.

Sees

  • All reconstructions, requests and best execution reviews in their scope
  • Link decisions with their reasons and the analyst's notes
  • Gap flags and data quality results
  • The audit trail for the records they review

Does

  • Approves or returns reconstructions with comments
  • Releases approved packages to legal, auditors or regulators
  • Approves best execution review results for the committee
  • Assigns and reassigns requests
  • Sets which desks and periods each analyst can see

Cannot

  • Approve a reconstruction they prepared themselves
  • Edit or delete entries in the audit trail
  • Alter the source communications or trade records
Approvals
Approves reconstructions and review results; reconstructions they prepare themselves need a second reviewer.
Notified about
Reconstructions waiting for approval, requests approaching the due date entered for them, and data sources that stop sending.

Best execution reviewer

Best execution analyst, execution quality analyst, trading compliance analyst

Tests whether orders were executed in line with the firm's execution policy, using the communications behind them.

Sees

  • Sampled orders with execution data, client instructions and linked communications
  • Execution policy factors recorded for each review
  • Earlier review results and exceptions for the same desk or venue

Does

  • Draws samples by venue, instrument, desk or client type
  • Records whether each order followed the execution policy, with a comment
  • Raises exceptions to the desk supervisor
  • Prepares results for the best execution committee

Cannot

  • Approve their own review results
  • Change links confirmed by another analyst
  • Export reconstruction packages
Approvals
Review results are approved by a compliance reviewer before they go to the committee.
Notified about
New samples assigned, exception responses from desk supervisors, and results returned with comments.

Desk supervisor

Desk head, trading supervisor, sales supervisor

Answers questions raised about their desk's executions and communications.

Sees

  • Exceptions raised about their desk
  • The orders and linked communications behind each exception
  • Best execution results for their desk

Does

  • Responds to exceptions with an explanation
  • Attaches supporting information to a response
  • Reviews their desk's results over time

Cannot

  • See requests, reconstructions or legal holds unless granted for a specific matter
  • Change links, review results or source records
  • See other desks' exceptions
Approvals
Their responses are reviewed by the best execution reviewer and the compliance reviewer.
Notified about
New exceptions about their desk and follow-up questions on their responses.

Legal and records

Counsel, legal operations, records manager

Manages regulator and litigation requests, legal holds and retention for the repository's records.

Sees

  • Requests, their scope and the packages delivered
  • Legal holds and the records each hold covers
  • Retention settings by record type and source

Does

  • Logs requests and their scope, and assigns them to compliance
  • Places and releases legal holds
  • Maintains retention periods agreed with your records policy
  • Receives approved packages for production

Cannot

  • Approve reconstructions
  • Delete records that are under hold or within retention
  • Edit the audit trail
Approvals
Releasing a legal hold and changing a retention period require a second person from legal or compliance.
Notified about
Packages ready for production, holds due for review, and records reaching the end of retention.

Auditor or examiner (read-only)

Internal auditor, external auditor, regulatory examiner (under temporary access)

Reviews reconstructions, review results and evidence without being able to change anything.

Sees

  • Reconstructions and review results within the scope granted
  • Request history and packages delivered
  • The audit trail

Does

  • Searches and reads records within their scope
  • Exports records they have been given access to, with each export logged
  • Leaves review notes where the firm enables them

Cannot

  • Change, approve or delete anything
  • See records outside the scope and dates granted
  • Keep access after it expires
Approvals
Their access is approved by a compliance reviewer or an administrator, with a scope and an end date.
Notified about
Nothing by default; access granted and expiring is confirmed to the person who approved it.

Administrator

Application administrator, compliance systems administrator

Manages users, roles, data sources and identity mappings without access to the content of reconstructions.

Sees

  • Users, roles and desk scopes
  • Data source status and ingestion errors
  • Identity mappings and their history

Does

  • Adds and removes users, or maps them from single sign-on groups
  • Maintains identity mappings for extensions, addresses and chat handles
  • Monitors data sources and raises ingestion issues
  • Runs access review reports

Cannot

  • Open communications, reconstructions or requests
  • Grant themselves a compliance role without a second approver
  • Change retention or legal holds
Approvals
Role changes that grant access to communications are approved by a compliance reviewer.
Notified about
Data source failures, unmapped identities and access reviews coming due.

Permissions at a glance

ActionAnalystReviewerBestEx reviewDesk super.LegalAuditorAdmin
Search communications and tradesOwn work onlyFullOwn work onlyNo accessView onlyView onlyNo access
Confirm or reject linksOwn work onlyFullOwn work onlyNo accessNo accessNo accessNo access
Build a reconstructionOwn work onlyFullNo accessNo accessNo accessNo accessNo access
Approve a reconstructionNo accessApprovesNo accessNo accessNo accessNo accessNo access
Export a reconstruction packageNo accessFullNo accessNo accessView onlyView onlyNo access
Record best execution resultsNo accessApprovesOwn work onlyNo accessNo accessView onlyNo access
Respond to exceptionsNo accessView onlyView onlyOwn work onlyNo accessView onlyNo access
Log and assign requestsView onlyFullNo accessNo accessFullView onlyNo access
Place or release legal holdsNo accessView onlyNo accessNo accessApprovesView onlyNo access
Maintain identity mappingsView onlyView onlyNo accessNo accessNo accessNo accessFull
View audit trailNo accessView onlyNo accessNo accessView onlyView onlyView only
Manage users and rolesNo accessApprovesNo accessNo accessNo accessNo accessFull
  • Full
  • Own work only
  • Approves
  • View only
  • No access

How access is controlled

  • Four-eyes rules are built in: nobody approves a reconstruction or review result they prepared, and releasing a legal hold or changing retention needs a second person.
  • Access to communications can be limited by desk, business line, region and period, so analysts see only what their assignment requires. Roles can be renamed and custom roles created during implementation.
  • Every permission change is recorded in the audit trail with who made it and when, and access review reports list each person's roles for periodic certification.
  • Staff sign in through your identity provider, and roles can follow its groups. Auditors and examiners get temporary read-only access with a defined scope and an end date, rather than shared accounts.

Features

What it does

Unified trade timeline

Orders, amendments, fills, calls, emails and chat messages for a trade shown in one ordered view.

Explainable links

Each suggested link between a communication and a trade shows why it was suggested: participant, instrument, client, time window or text match.

Analyst confirmation

Suggested links stay suggestions until an analyst confirms them; rejected links are kept with the reason.

Time normalization

Timestamps from each source are converted to a common time standard, with the original value and source kept alongside.

Transcript search

Search call transcripts produced by your recording platform or transcription service alongside email and chat text.

Reconstruction packages

Approved reconstructions exported as an indexed package with the timeline, source files and audit record.

Best execution sampling

Draw samples of orders for review, see the related communications and record the outcome against your execution policy.

Identity mapping

Phone extensions, email addresses and chat handles mapped to people and desks, with the history of each mapping.

Gap detection

Periods where a trader has trades but no recorded communications, or where a source was unavailable, are flagged for review.

Legal holds

Place records linked to a matter on hold so they are kept beyond their normal retention period until the hold is released.

Request tracking

Regulator and internal requests logged with their scope, assignee, due date you enter and the packages delivered.

Exam-ready audit trail

Every search, view, link decision, approval and export recorded with the person and time.

Integrations

How it connects to your systems

Connects toHowWhat flows
Order and execution managementOrders, amendments, cancellations and fills from your OMS and EMS by scheduled file or API, including FIX drop copies where available.In: orders, order events and executions with timestamps and identifiers.
Voice recording platformCall recordings, metadata and transcripts from the voice recording system you already use, including those run as a Moraph managed service.In: call metadata, audio references and transcripts.
Communications archiveEmail and chat messages from your archive, including Moraph's Communication Archiving managed service.In: messages, attachments and participant metadata.
Directory and HRPeople, desks and reporting lines from your directory, used to map identities to traders and supervisors.In: user, desk and supervisor records.
Trade surveillanceAlerts from Moraph's Trade Surveillance & Market Abuse Monitor or your own surveillance system can open a reconstruction directly.In: alert references. Out: reconstruction status and link.
Single sign-onStaff sign in through your identity provider (SAML or OpenID Connect).In: user identity and group membership for role assignment.
Work APIRequests, reconstructions and review results available to your reporting tools through the Moraph Work API.Out: request status, reconstruction metadata and review outcomes.

Each integration is confirmed in discovery and specified in the design. See how an engagement progresses.

Security and privacy

How your data is protected

Single sign-on

Staff sign in through your identity provider, so your password and multi-factor policies apply.

Role-based access

What each person can see follows their role and their desk and period scope; approving a reconstruction is separate from building one.

Encryption and keys

Client data is encrypted, with keys Moraph staff cannot use without explicit, time-bound authorization.

Complete audit trail

Every search, view, link decision, approval and export is logged with the person and time, and cannot be edited.

Source integrity

Source records are stored as received and never altered; notes and links are kept as separate, attributed records.

Data residency

Data stays in the hosting region you choose: the United States, the United Kingdom or Australia.

Company-wide controls, independent audits (SOC 2 Type II and ISO/IEC 27001) and data residency are described in our Trust Center, where you can request the evidence pack.

Reporting

What you can report on

10 standard reports, grouped by who uses them. Each shows who it is for, how it can be broken down, how it is delivered and what it is used for. The data behind them is also available to your own reporting tools.

Operational

Open requests

For compliance reviewers and legal

Every open regulator and internal request with its scope, assignee, the due date entered for it and the status of each reconstruction.

Break down by
Requester, Assignee, Status, Due date
Delivered as
Live dashboard; CSV export
Used for
Making sure every request is worked and answered on time.

Link review queue

For compliance analysts and reviewers

Suggested links waiting for confirmation, with the factors behind each and the reconstruction they belong to.

Break down by
Reconstruction, Source, Link factor, Analyst
Delivered as
Live view
Used for
Keeping link decisions moving and spotting sources that produce weak suggestions.

Data source status

For administrators and compliance reviewers

Each connected source with its last successful delivery, records received, records held for data checks and any outage periods.

Break down by
Source, Period, Error type
Delivered as
Live dashboard; scheduled email
Used for
Finding gaps in incoming data before a reconstruction depends on it.

Coverage

Communication gaps

For compliance reviewers and supervisors

Traders and periods with trading activity but no recorded communications, and source outages that affect coverage.

Break down by
Desk, Trader, Source, Period
Delivered as
Live dashboard; CSV and PDF export
Used for
Following up on missing recordings and evidencing that coverage is monitored.

Unmapped identities

For administrators and compliance reviewers

Extensions, email addresses and chat handles that appear in communications but are not mapped to a person or desk.

Break down by
Source, Identifier type, First seen
Delivered as
Live view; CSV export
Used for
Keeping identity mappings complete so links are not missed.

Best execution

Best execution review results

For best execution committee and compliance

Sampled orders, the outcome of each review against the execution policy, and exceptions with the desk response.

Break down by
Venue, Instrument class, Desk, Client type, Period
Delivered as
Live dashboard; PDF for committee packs; CSV export
Used for
Giving the committee evidence of how execution decisions were made and where policy was not followed.

Open exceptions

For best execution reviewers and desk supervisors

Exceptions raised from reviews that are waiting for a desk response or a decision.

Break down by
Desk, Exception type, Age, Status
Delivered as
Live view; scheduled email
Used for
Making sure each exception is answered and closed.

Regulatory and audit

Reconstruction register

For compliance, legal and internal audit

Every reconstruction produced, who built and approved it, what it covered and to whom it was released.

Break down by
Request, Period covered, Approver, Recipient
Delivered as
Live view; PDF and CSV export
Used for
Showing what was produced for each request and that each package was approved.

Legal holds

For legal and records management

Active holds, the records each covers, who placed them and when they were last reviewed.

Break down by
Matter, Record type, Placed by, Review date
Delivered as
Live view; CSV export
Used for
Keeping holds current and evidencing preservation.

Audit trail extract

For internal audit and examiners

Who searched, viewed, linked, approved or exported what, for a selected reconstruction, user or period.

Break down by
Record, User, Action, Date range
Delivered as
On request in the product; CSV and PDF export
Used for
Answering questions about who accessed communications and how a reconstruction was built.

Exports, access and evidence

  • Every report can be exported to CSV, and summary and evidence reports to PDF. Reports can be scheduled to arrive by email for the people entitled to see them.
  • Filters can be saved, so a compliance reviewer, committee secretary or records manager can keep their own views.
  • Request, reconstruction and review data is available through the Moraph Work API for your data warehouse or business intelligence tool. Communication content is not included in API extracts unless you enable it.
  • Reports respect each viewer's role and desk scope: a desk supervisor sees only their desk, and examiners and auditors see only what they have been granted.
  • Regulatory and audit reports can be run as of a past date and give the same result each time. Running and exporting a report is itself recorded in the audit trail.

Deployment

Where and how it runs

Moraph cloud

Hosted and operated by Moraph in the United States, United Kingdom or Australia region, chosen to match where your records must be held.

Dedicated environment

A single-tenant environment for firms whose policies require isolation, scoped in the proposal.

With managed archiving

Optionally run alongside Moraph's Communication Archiving or Voice Recording Compliance managed services, so sources and the repository are supported together.

Security controls, independent audits and data residency are set out in our Trust Center. Engagement models and what drives a quotation are on Working with Moraph.

Implementation

What a rollout involves

The general phases are on Working with Moraph. For this product, they involve the following.

Source inventory

We list the order, execution, voice, email and chat sources in scope, their formats and time sources, and agree delivery by file or API.

Identity mapping

Extensions, addresses and chat handles are mapped to people and desks from your directory, and owners are agreed for keeping the mappings current.

Linking rules

Linking factors and time windows are set for your desks and instruments, and tested on sample trades with your compliance team.

Retention and holds

Retention periods and hold procedures are configured to match your records policy and the regimes you are subject to.

Workflow and roles

Request handling, approval steps, desk scopes and roles are configured to match your procedures.

Historical load and go-live

The historical period you choose is loaded and checked for gaps, staff are trained on their own workflows, and the repository goes live source by source.

Limitations

What it does not do

Worth knowing before you evaluate it.

  • The repository does not record calls or capture messages itself. It uses the recordings and archives your existing systems produce, and its completeness depends on theirs.
  • Suggested links are suggestions. An analyst confirms each link, and the firm is responsible for the reconstructions it releases.
  • Transcripts come from your recording platform or transcription service; the repository does not guarantee their accuracy.
  • It is not a trade surveillance system. It can receive alerts from one and reconstruct the trades behind them.
  • It does not decide whether best execution was achieved. It records the reviewer's judgment against your execution policy.
  • It does not submit anything to regulators. Approved packages are delivered to your legal or compliance team for production.
  • Records are retained for the periods you configure. Choosing retention periods that meet your obligations is your firm's decision.
  • Hosting is available in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia regions; other regions are not offered.

Evaluation checklist

What to test in a demonstration or pilot

Questions worth putting to us, and to any other vendor you are considering.

  1. Reconstruct a past trade you have already reconstructed by hand and compare the results
  2. Check how each suggested link explains itself and whether your analysts would accept it
  3. Review how clock differences between your sources are recorded and shown
  4. Run the communication gap report for a sample period and check what it finds
  5. Walk a best execution sample from selection to committee results
  6. Confirm role separation: who can build, approve and export a reconstruction

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Do we need to replace our voice recording or archiving systems?

No. The repository reads from the systems you already use and links what they hold to your trade records.

How are communications matched to trades?

By participant, instrument, client and time window, and by text found in messages and transcripts. Each suggestion shows the factors behind it, and an analyst confirms it before it becomes part of a reconstruction.

What happens when system clocks disagree?

Each record keeps its original timestamp and time source. Known offsets between sources are recorded and shown, so the reviewer can see how the order of events was determined.

Who owns the data in the repository?

Your firm does. How it is returned to you and deleted at the end of the agreement is set out in the contract.

How is it priced?

As a subscription, usually measured by the number of monitored users and data sources, with implementation charged separately. See Working with Moraph for what drives a quotation.

Is there an accessibility conformance report?

Ask for one through the procurement request form at /how-to-buy/request, naming the version you are evaluating.

Next steps

Evaluate Trade Reconstruction Repository

Buying through a formal procurement? See How to buy for purchasing routes, accessibility conformance reports and company information. Documentation: Trade Reconstruction Repository guides on docs.moraph.com (getting started and security guides are public; setup, administration and integration guides are for client accounts). Support: Trade Reconstruction Repository support guide.