Financial Desktop Connectivity and Interoperability (FDC3)

Security Demo App 2 (Security POC 2) is a specialized demonstration application designed to showcase FDC3 security capabilities, specifically private channels and encryption.

It functions as the counterparty to 'POC 1' in a pricing demonstration scenario. The app performs the following workflow:

1. Listens for the demo.GetPrices intent on the fdc3.instrument context type.
2. Responds via a private channel.
3. Provides encrypted valuation-style context to the requester.

Pricer is a sample application designed for the FDC3 Developer Course. It demonstrates how a pricing-oriented UI can react to FDC3 intents. Specifically, it listens for the following intents on the fdc3.instrument channel:

• ViewQuote
• demo.GetPrices

This application is intended to be used alongside intent raisers and security Proof of Concept (POC) applications that return valuations to demonstrate FDC3 connectivity and security workflows.

Security Demo App 1 is a buy-side client application designed for Proof of Concept (POC) testing of FDC3 security features. Its primary workflow involves:

1. Raising a demo.GetPrices request.
2. Including a signed fdc3.instrument context within the request.
3. Receiving encrypted valuations in response from Security POC 2.

FDC3 (Financial Desktop Connectivity and Collaboration Consortium) is an open standard designed to enable interoperability and data exchange between applications on a financial desktop. It allows applications to:

• Launch other apps: Build launchers that can trigger specific applications.
• Respond to activity (Context Sharing): Share the current topic or data (context) with other applications so they stay synchronized.
• Request functionality (Intents): Raise standardized requests (intents) for other applications to resolve, extending functionality across the desktop.

FDC3 is platform-agnostic and can be implemented on Web and Native platforms using any language, provided a Desktop Agent is present to coordinate the interactions.

FDC3 standardizes how applications communicate on a desktop without requiring pre-defined inter-application workflows.

Key benefits for users and businesses:

• Low-touch integration: FDC3-enabled applications can participate in workflows automatically without manual coding or custom integration for every new pair of apps.
• Workflow flexibility: You can replace a single application with another that supports the same Intents and Context without breaking the existing desktop workflow.
• Best-of-breed selection: Enables businesses to use specialized, high-quality applications that work together seamlessly rather than being locked into a single monolithic suite.

The fdc3-standard module provides the core TypeScript interface definitions required to implement the FDC3 standard. This includes critical interfaces such as the DesktopAgent interface, which defines how an agent interacts with the desktop environment, and the app directory schema used for application discovery and registration.

For full implementation details and the underlying logic of the FDC3 protocol, refer to the official FDC3 Specification.

The schemas/api directory contains JSONSchema definitions used to implement wire protocols for applications interacting with a Desktop Agent (DA). These schemas are also used for importing into Bridging wire protocols.

Key schema files include:

• common.schema.json: Common element definitions used across multiple schemas.
• appRequest.schema.json: The base definition for all request messages sent from an app to a DA.
• agentResponse.schema.json: The base definition for all response messages sent from a DA to an app.
• agentEvent.schema.json: The base definition for all event messages sent from a DA to an app.
• *Request.schema.json: Specific request message definitions.
• *Response.schema.json: Specific response message definitions.
• *Event.schema.json: Specific event message definitions.

FDC3 (Financial Desktop Connectivity and Collaboration Consortium) is an open standard designed to enable plug-and-play interoperability between desktop applications in financial workflows. It allows web and native applications to communicate without requiring prior bilateral agreements.

The standard provides several key mechanisms for cross-application interaction:

• Intents: Standardized verbs used to invoke specific actions between applications.
• Context Data: A standardized format for sharing data (such as a stock ticker or account ID) between applications.
• App Directory: A REST-based standard for discovering available applications.
• Desktop Agent: Standardized API operations for a central agent that manages application communication.
• Agent Bridging: Mechanisms to allow different agents or environments to communicate.