It all started in October 1851 Paul Julius Reuter, a German-born immigrant, opened an office in the City of London which transmitted stock market quotations between London and Paris via the new Calais-Dover cable. Two years earlier he had used pigeons to fly stock prices between Aachen and Brussels, a service that operated for a year until the gap in the telegraph link was closed.Reuters, as the agency soon became known, eventually extended its service to the whole British press as well as to other European countries. It also expanded the content to include general and economic news from all around the world. The reputation of its service was enhanced by a succession of reporting scoops. For example, in 1865 Reuters was first in Europe with news of President Lincoln’s assassination in the United States.As overland telegraph and undersea cable facilities developed, the business expanded beyond Europe to include the Far East in 1872 and South America in 1874. In 1883 Reuters began to use a ‘column printer’ to transmit messages electrically to London newspapers and in 1923 pioneered the use of radio to transmit news internationally. In 1927 it introduced the teleprinter to distribute news to London newspapers.In 1925 the Press Association, the UK press agency, took a majority holding in Reuters Ltd. and in 1939 the company moved its corporate headquarters to its present location at 85 Fleet Street, London.During both World Wars, Reuters came under pressure from the British government to serve British interests. In 1941 Reuters deflected this pressure by restructuring itself as a private company. The new owners, the British national and provincial press, formed the Reuters Trust, with independent trustees. The Trust preserves Reuters independence and neutrality. The principles of the Trust were maintained and the power to enforce them was strengthened when Reuters became a public company in 1984.Modern developments
Reuters continued to modernize rapidly in the latter half of the 20th century. The introduction of a succession of computerized products for international traders transformed the business. The Stockmaster service (1964), which transmitted financial data internationally, quickly proved a success and began this transformation.In 1973 a further innovative development was the launch of the Reuter Monitor, which created an electronic marketplace for foreign exchange. This service expanded to carry news and prices covering securities, commodities and money and was further enhanced in 1981 with the launch of the Reuter Monitor Dealing Service.Following a dramatic increase in profitability, Reuters was floated as a public company in 1984 on the London Stock Exchange and on NASDAQ in the US. On listing, the Company had a market capitalisation of some £700 million. Subsequently, Reuters made a series of acquisitions including Visnews (1985 – renamed Reuters Television), Instinet (1986), TIBCO (formerly Teknekron) and Quotron (both in 1994).Reuters continued to grow rapidly, widening the range of its business products and expanding its global reporting network for media, financial and economic services. Recent key product launches include Equities 2000 (1987), Dealing 2000-2 (1992), Business Briefing (1994), Reuters Television for the financial markets (1994), 3000 Series (1996) and the Reuters 3000 Xtra service (1999). In 1995, Reuters established its ‘Greenhouse Fund’ to take minority investments in a range of start-up technology companies, initially in the United States. In July 1999 TIBCO Software completed an IPO on NASDAQ; Reuters retains a substantial proportion of the shares. Reuters announced in early 2000 a range of major initiatives designed to accelerate its use of Internet technologies, open new markets and migrate its core business to an internet-based model. In May 2001 Instinet completed an IPO on NASDAQ; Reuters retains the majority of the shares.In October 2001 Reuters completed the largest acquisition in its history, buying most of the assets of Bridge Information Systems.In March 2003, Reuters acquired Multex.com, Inc., a provider of global financial information.
Reuters productsEvery day, financial professionals across the globe receive vital market data, in-depth news, quotes, statistics and analytics on financial and commodity markets from Reuters. Best known for their expertise in journalism, they are also one of the largest information providers in the world. Relying on their vast experience in the industry and incorporating advanced technologies; Reuters have played an important role in redefining this rapidly changing industry. They provide a wide range of products and services that help their customers be more productiveFinancial products and services fall into four broad categories:· Information · Transaction & interaction · Risk management · Business integrationInformation More than ever, industry professionals are inundated by the amount of data they receive. Reuters products help professionals turn raw data into useable information, so they can make decisions with confidence.Financial information is collected from an array of sources including exchanges, over-the-counter markets, research services and other niche contributors such as energy and fixed income providers. The data is available through various delivery platforms such as workstations, datafeeds and Internet solutions, all carefully crafted to maximize data delivery and functionality for the customer. High-powered workstations, such as Reuters 3000 Xtra and Reuters BridgeStation operate on Microsoft Windows and combine cross-market data with superior analytics, charting capabilities and news, so that traders, analysts, money managers, economists and others have the tools they need to interpret and act in the marketplace.Reaching out to customers on the Web, Reuters offer rich data and tools in an Internet browser, providing both a convenient and cost-effective information solution. Their high-bandwidth network also interacts with the range of portable, wireless communications devices on the market, including digital cellular phones and PDAs, giving mobile investors access to critical financial information while on the go.Transaction & interactionOperating one of the largest order routing networks, Reuters enable buyers and sellers to trade electronically, which can mean better execution opportunities and improved performance, and the advantage of moving about anonymously to find the best trade at the best price. Customers can choose the product that best suits their needs, such as Reuters Dealing 3000 or Reuters Dealing Link, a browser-based version, which gives them access to the largest network community of its kind with over 17,000 foreign exchange and money markets traders.
Risk managementIn addition to helping customers manage their investments, Reuters also help them better manage risk throughout their internal trading process. These products are particularly suited to foreign exchange and money market professionals in the middle and back offices of banks and large corporations who are responsible for risk management systems, position-keeping, pricing, risk analysis, credit and other exposure. Products such as Reuters Kondor+, a real-time position-keeping system, help treasury professionals make informed decisions in managing the financial exposure of their trading room activities. Business integrationCapitalizing on Reuters strengths in data management, “Reuters” helps customers automate and integrate their own internal business processes. Products like the Reuters Market Data System help companies manage financial content across their trading environment. This can result in greater performance, reliability and, ultimately, profitability. New capabilities for the futureRecently, Reuters unveiled several new products including Reuters Messaging, an instant messaging service built specifically for the financial community. It enables financial professionals to collaborate effectively with their customers and colleagues. Reuters Trader and Reuters Knowledge were launched in the first half of 2003 while Reuters Intelligent Advisor is due for release later this year. Reuters Trader is targeted at professionals working in the European capital markets and provides market information and decision support tools. Reuters Knowledge is an information service for research and investment banking professionals that combines the information they need for their job in one product. Reuters Intelligent Advisor is designed for private wealth managers who look after high net worth individuals to help them work more efficiently and profitably. These new products use browser-based technologies for easy deployment.Editorial policyReuters news operations are based on the company’s Trust Principles which stipulate that the integrity, independence and freedom from bias of Reuters must be upheld at all times. Reuters has strict policies in place to ensure adherence to these principles. We are committed to accurate and balanced reporting. Errors of fact are always promptly corrected and clearly published.
Reuters is the largest international multi-media news agency, reporting extensively from around the world on topics ranging from financial markets to general and political news. A considerable amount of Reuters coverage, including pictures and video, is of wars or conflicts during which all sides are actively promoting their positions and arguments. “Reuters” is committed to reporting the facts and in all situations avoids the use of emotive terms. The only exception is when they are quoting someone directly or in indirect speech. Reuters aim to report objectively actions, identity and background and pay particular attention to all our coverage in extremely sensitive regions. Reuters do not take sides and attempt to reflect in our stories, pictures and video the views of all sides. They are not in the business of glorifying one side or another or of disseminating propaganda. Reuters journalists do not offer their own opinions or views. The world relies on Reuters journalists to provide accurate, clearly sourced accounts of events as they occur, wherever they occur, so that individuals, organizations and governments can make their own decisions based on the facts.Reuters worldwideOperates in 200 cities in 94 countries and have editorial staff in 197 news bureaux around the world.Company overview
Reuters is a global information company providing indispensable information tailored for professionals in the financial services, media and corporate markets. Their information is trusted and drives decision making across the globe. They have a reputation for speed, accuracy and freedom from bias.Although “Reuters” is best known as the world’s largest international multimedia news agency, more than 90% of their revenue derives from their financial services business. Some 458,000 financial market professionals working in the equities, fixed income, foreign exchange, money, commodities and energy markets around the world use Reuters products. They rely on Reuters services to provide them with the information and tools they need to help them be more productive.
“Reuters” core strengths lie in providing the content, analytics, trading and messaging capabilities needed by financial professionals. Their open technology, based on industry standards, enables our customers to search, store and integrate our information with content from other sources, facilitating the way they work. Reuters provide financial institutions with specially designed tools to help them reduce risk and distribute and manage the ever-increasing volumes of market data. They also offer bespoke automated trading products for the treasury market. They supply news – text, graphics, video and pictures – to media organizations and websites around the world and also provide news and research services to businesses outside financial services. Below the structure of “Reuters” is represented in scales.