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What You Can Build

Every component in Meridian beyond the kernel is a plugin. Here's what each type does — and why you might build one.

Data Gateways (DGM)

Data Gateways are how the outside world gets into Meridian. A DGM plugin connects to any data source — a Bloomberg terminal, an exchange WebSocket, an SFTP drop of CSV files — and normalizes it into messages the rest of the system understands. If data exists somewhere, a DGM can bring it in.

Example use cases: real-time equity feeds from exchange direct connections, end-of-day NAV files from fund administrators, alternative data like satellite imagery or social sentiment scores, crypto exchange market data via REST polling.

Signal Engines

Signal Engines are where your alpha lives. They consume market data and positions, run your logic, and publish trading signals. The barrier to entry is intentionally low — the 15-line Python example on our homepage? That's a signal engine. But the same interface scales to multi-factor ML models running on GPU clusters.

Example use cases: momentum crossover strategies, mean reversion on pairs, gradient-boosted models trained on order flow, NLP-driven sentiment scoring from earnings transcripts.

Portfolio Optimizers

Portfolio Optimizers sit between signals and orders. They take raw trading signals, combine them with current holdings and risk constraints, and output target portfolio weights. This is where you encode your investment philosophy — how aggressive, how diversified, how constrained.

Example use cases: mean-variance optimization with transaction cost penalties, risk parity allocation across asset classes, equal-weight baskets with sector caps, Black-Litterman models incorporating your signal views.

Order Management (OMS)

OMS plugins handle the rules before an order hits the market. They enforce compliance, apply allocation logic, and stage orders for execution. Think of them as the responsible adult in the room — making sure every trade is permissible before it leaves the building.

Example use cases: pre-trade compliance checks against restricted lists and concentration limits, fair allocation across accounts, order staging with approval workflows, tax-lot selection strategies (FIFO, LIFO, tax-loss harvesting).

Execution Management (EMS)

EMS plugins decide how to execute. Given an order, they choose the algorithm, the venue, and the timing. A simple EMS sends market orders. A sophisticated one slices a large block into child orders across venues, minimizing market impact while racing the clock.

Example use cases: VWAP slicing across a full trading day, TWAP for steady execution, implementation shortfall algorithms that adapt to real-time conditions, RFQ engines for fixed income, algo wheels that rotate between broker algorithms based on performance.

Broker Adapters (CCM)

Broker Adapters are the last mile — the actual wire to a trading venue. They translate Meridian's internal order format into whatever protocol the venue speaks and relay back fills, rejects, and status updates. Each venue is different, so each adapter is specialized.

Example use cases: FIX 4.2/4.4 connectivity to equity brokers, exchange-native APIs for direct market access, crypto venue adapters for Coinbase or Binance, dealer RFQ platforms for OTC derivatives.

Reconciliation & Corporate Actions

The kernel's Book of Record (BOR) handles the core transaction ledger — positions, cash, and settlement state. Vendor plugins extend the BOR by connecting it to the outside world: reconciling against custodian statements, processing corporate action announcements, and managing derivative lifecycle events.

Example use cases: custodian reconciliation that ingests MT535/MT536 statements and flags position breaks, corporate action processing for stock splits, dividends, mergers, and spin-offs, derivative lifecycle management for expiry, exercise, and assignment events.

Valuation

Valuation plugins answer the question "what is this worth right now?" They read positions from the Book of Record, apply pricing logic, and publish marked-to-market values. The kernel tells you what you hold — valuation plugins tell you what it's worth.

Example use cases: QuantLib-based pricing for derivatives and structured products, vendor pricing feeds from ICE or Bloomberg for end-of-day marks, real-time mid-price valuation from live market data, fair value models for illiquid securities.

Compliance

Compliance plugins evaluate rules against live portfolio state. They can run pre-trade (blocking orders that would breach limits), post-trade (flagging violations for review), or continuously (monitoring drift against mandates). They consume positions and orders, and publish pass/fail verdicts.

Example use cases: concentration limit checks (no more than 5% in a single name), restricted list screening against internal and regulatory lists, regulatory reporting triggers, investment policy statement enforcement.

Summary

Plugin Type What It Does Example Use Case Difficulty
Data Gateway (DGM) Connects external data sources Bloomberg real-time feed adapter Beginner
Signal Engine Generates trading signals Momentum crossover strategy Beginner
Portfolio Optimizer Converts signals to target weights Mean-variance with constraints Intermediate
OMS Compliance checks and order routing Pre-trade restricted list screening Intermediate
EMS Smart order routing and algos VWAP execution algorithm Advanced
Broker Adapter (CCM) Venue connectivity FIX protocol bridge Advanced
Reconciliation Custodian matching & corporate actions MT535 statement reconciliation Advanced
Valuation Mark-to-market pricing QuantLib derivatives pricing Intermediate
Compliance Rule evaluation Concentration limit monitoring Intermediate

Next Steps

Ready to build? Here's the path: