CLS Names Thomas Barkhuff as Chief Information Officer

CLS has announced this Monday that it has appointed Thomas Barkhuff as Chief Information Officer, as well as serve as a member of the Executive Management Committee.

CLS Group is a leading provider of risk mitigation and settlement services for foreign exchange dealers and institutions. Following the appointment, Barkhuff will report to the Chief Executive Officer of the company Marc Bayle de Jessé.

As the Chief Information Officer, Barkhuff will be responsible for the oversight of CLS’s technology and information security strategy and operations. Namely, it will be on his shoulders to ensure the continued delivery of stable, resilient and effective IT services, applications and infrastructure, the company said in today’s statement.

Furthermore, the company said that Barkhuff will be integral in supporting CLS’s efforts to deliver market-wide solutions that facilitate business growth for the Forex Forex Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest tradi Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest tradi Read this Term market.

Commenting on the appointment, Marc Bayle de Jessé, Chief Executive Officer, CLS, said in the statement: “Tom’s appointment is of critical importance to CLS. A robust technology platform has always been at the core of CLS, both for our settlement services and now CLSNet, the first global FX market enterprise application running on Blockchain Blockchain Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned). In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data, making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamp Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned). In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data, making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamp Read this Term in production.

“Tom will oversee the continued implementation of CLS’s multi-year program to deliver a single platform supporting CLSSettlement, CLSNow and CLSClearedFX as well as the further development of CLSNet.”

Tom joins CLS from CGI

Before joining CLS, Barkhuff was the Chief Technology Officer of the Finance and Insurance Group of CGI. In this role, he led the global software engineering team and oversaw different finance and insurance products.

He brings with him nearly three decades worth of experience working in financial services. During his career, he has held positions at TD Bank Group, where he was the Chief Information Officer for the US bank, and Barkhuff was previously the Senior Technology Executive for Bank of America.

“As the FX market continues to undergo structural and regulatory change, technology plays a crucial role in the evolution of market infrastructures, Thomas Barkhuff, Chief Information Officer, CLS, added in the statement.

“CLS has successfully adopted existing and new technologies to bring innovative solutions to the FX industry in settlement, processing and data. In partnership with the Technology division, I look forward to further developing our infrastructure to support our clients and the market.”