Orion's flagship product, eBrokerage 2.0, is now certified to execute trading transactions on the Saudi Stock Market

Dubai, UAE 10 August 2008 - Orion TradeSoft, a member of Orion Holdings Limited, announce its flagship product, E-Brokerage's 2.0 as one of few non-banking companies in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to be certified to execute trading transactions on the Saudi Stock Market, or Tadawul. The company received its certification in record time having passed all Tadawul trading tests first time around.

This is a significant milestone for Orion as the KSA market is by far the largest of MENA stock markets in terms of revenue projections, volumes and opportunities.  The Tadawul Certification is a tough certification to obtain, developed by world-leading consulting company McKinsey and utilizing best practices in mature global capital markets.

Sherif Mohamed, General Manager of Orion TradeSoft, said: ''This achievement places Orion TradeSoft on the map as a regional financial IT solution heavyweight. Now we have the unique ability to not only provide a comprehensive online trading platform but also provide access to global financial markets with an ever growing list of financial exchanges and instruments for investors to trade."

Mohamed Khalil, Orion Holdings' CEO hailed this achievement as a "major step toward realizing our vision of being the company that all traders, IT and finance-related professionals turn to."

Utilizing its strong partnership with NYFIX, the world leader in FIX technology, Orion TradeSoft was able to seamlessly connect to Tadawul via FIX (Financial Information Exchange Protocol) and successfully execute all the test cases required for the Tadawul Certificate without a single failure.

Tadawul has now been added to Orion's network of exchanges through Arabian Capital along with the Dubai Financial Market, Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange, Kuwait Stock Exchange and more. This proves the capabilities of Orion Order Management System in handling larger and more complex exchanges as Tadawul, which is the eleventh largest market in the world.

The certification process was done through Arabian Capital, a strategic ally of Orion's, which provides a wide range of investments products and services in the region.

Mohammad Al Suliman, Vice President of Operations and Support Services for Arabian Capital said "we were impressed with by the speed & accuracy of Orion Trade Soft, & jointly proud to be awarded with the Saudi equity market exchange membership certification from Tadawul, however our interest in becoming an affiliate to Orion TradeSoft, & to be the first certified broker for Orion TradeSoft in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, was focused on the financial instruments & technology   used by OTS.''

He added " We are looking forward to operate our financial services  jointly with  OTS & open the horizon for our customers to new & innovative Financial  instruments for the Saudi markets which will add tremendous value to our investors as we are always looking for Secure & innovative Financial services for Arabian Capital customers."

Orion's Order Management system is an international financial trading solution which enables brokerage firms to exceed their customers' expectations by offering a user-friendly, integrated, end-to-end online trading platform that accommodates the needs of all investors from the highly sophisticated to the just starting out.

-Ends-

About Orion Holdings Limited
www.orionholding.com
Orion Holdings Limited is a fast-developing holding company whose principal business is the operation of financial services. Orion Holding offers a wide range of financial solutions geared towards addressing the needs of large corporations, institutional investors and private high-net-worth clients.

Orion Holdings Limited has the strength and expertise to meet client needs working relentlessly, and using knowledge, intelligence, market insight and regional coverage to help clients capture opportunities and manage risk.

Its collection of companies has expertise in:

  • Multi asset-class Prime brokerage

  • Corporate finance

  • Focused financial IT solutions

For more information, please contact:
Mary Khamasmieh,
Media Relations Manager
Buchanan Middle East,
Dubai,
United Arab Emirates
Mobile: +971 50 2731 753
mary.khamasmieh@buchananme.com

Nadine Wehbe, Public Relations & Media Manager
Orion Holdings Limited
Sheikh Zayed Road, Emaar Business Park
Building No. 4, Office 606
P.O. Box 211786, Dubai,  UAE
Tel No (Direct): + 971 4 3649162
Tel (Office): +971 4 3649100
Fax No.+971 4 3918688
Mobile No. + 971505660223
Email: nwehbe@OrionHolding.com
www.orionholding.com 

© Press Release 2008