An alpha capture system is a computer system that enables investment banks and other organizations to submit "trading ideas" or "trade ideas"[1] to clients in a written electronic format, for example TIM Group's TIM Ideas product or Bloomberg LP's Trade Ideas product.
[2] Financial Services Authority Markets Division: Newsletter on Market Conduct and Transaction Reporting Issues, Issue No.
17, September 2006,[3] First used in 2001 by Marshall Wace[4] they are an alternative to the traditional stockbrokering approach of communicating ideas and strategies to clients face-to-face or over the telephone.
[3] The term alpha capture refers to the aim of such systems to help investors find alpha or market-beating returns on investments.
[5] Submitted trade ideas are accompanied by a rationale, timeframe and conviction level and enable investors to quantify and monitor the performance of different ideas.