VANCOUVER, British Columbia – June 24, 2010 – ActiveState, the dynamic language experts offering solutions for Perl, Python, and Tcl, is adding key Python open source packages specifically for financial and scientific computing markets.
In response to the growing demand for Python in heavy data-centric scientific computing and financial modelling applications, ActiveState is releasing three key packages in ActiveState’s award-winning Python distribution, ActivePython:
- NumPy: the fundamental library needed for scientific and financial computing with Python as it contains a powerful N-dimensional array object, advanced array slicing methods, convenient array reshaping methods and libraries with numerical routines for basic linear algebra functions, basic Fourier transforms and sophisticated random number capabilities.
- SciPy: a suite of scientific tools for Python. It depends on the NumPy library, and it gathers a variety of high-level science and engineering modules together as a single package.
- matplotlib: A Python numerical plotting library that provides production quality 2-D numerical plotting functionality in a variety of hardcopy formats and interactive environments across platforms.
With the addition of NumPy, SciPy, and matplotlib, ActivePython now includes the fundamental packages in a fully supported Python distribution that enables developers, traders, quantitative analysts (quants), scientist and engineers to build the data intensive complex mathematical computing applications for financial modeling and scientific analysis of complex data.
“Python’s extensibility and interoperability with other programming languages and numerical libraries makes it an increasingly popular choice, in both the financial and scientific computing communities,” said Diane Mueller, Director, Enterprise Product Management, ActiveState. “ActiveState offers the most robust Python distribution and service levels agreements for companies demanding efficiencies and high performance required in today’s increasingly complex computing environments.”
ActivePython For Financial Markets
In response to the major failures of the United States financial system and specifically the complexity and lack of transparency of troubled asset-backed securities over the past few years, on April 7, 2010, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed new rules covering asset-back securities.
One of the SEC proposals is to require, along with the prospectus filing, the filing of a computer program modeling the contractual cash flow provisions expressed in Python.
Whether or not the SEC proposal is adopted, an increasing number of developers in the financial services space are moving to Python because it offers a superior, standards-based way to connect their proprietary modeling software to regulators, investors and other interested parties. The Python language, with its robust support for mathematical computing, has also grown in popularity with financial quantitative analysts, playing an important role in the trading and visualization systems throughout the financial industry.
ActiveState’s inclusion of NumPy and SciPy offers developers and quantitative analysts/programmers working with traders, fund administrators/managers, regulators, valuation specialists, risk managers and portfolio managers:
- The packages necessary to build any applications for financial modeling, to help visualize if-then scenarios to assess risk
- Ability to get ready to comply with the SEC’s proposal to use Python for creating financial models that will be used to add new levels of transparency to asset-backed securities market
- Service level guarantees to support the financial sector’s business-critical systems
Availability
NumPy, SciPy and matplotlib are available for Windows, Linux and Mac OSX in ActivePython Business Edition, Enterprise Edition, and OEM Edition. ActivePython Business Edition is $999/server/year. Contact ActiveState for pricing on Enterprise and OEM Editions.
Additional Resources
- SEC proposed rule: https://www.sec.gov/rules/proposed/2010/33-9117.pdf
About ActiveState
ActiveState is the world leader in enabling companies to develop, manage, and distribute applications with dynamic languages. The company’s products and services for Perl, Python, Tcl and other web languages, are used by over 2 million developers and 97% of the Fortune 1000 to build and run applications from mission-critical to open source projects. ActiveState’s end-to-end solutions include development tools, language distributions, indemnification, OEM solutions, support and other services. With these, customers such as Cisco, CA, HP, Bank of America, Siemens, and Lockheed Martin are able to accelerate productivity, minimize risk, and ensure compliance.
Contact:
Bret Clement
PR@activestate.com
303.462.3057
