Reports EKA – Reimagining Commodity Management (CM) | Page 3

solutions. And finally, there are several new cloud-native offerings currently emerging that focus on very specific functional or analytic niches (i.e. risk metrics such as VAR, PnL and others) that involve uploading business data to a web service and receiving analytic reports. An additional trend noted in recent ComTech research is the growing awareness of the total cost of ownership of applications supporting trading and risk management. As margins on commodity transaction up and down the value chain have shrunk for almost all market participants, and as cloud applications have become more widely available in the market, ETRM/CTRM customers across all tiers are becoming more price sensitive and are seeking to reduce the costs associated with the acquisition and implementation of trading applications as part of a broad effort to reduce their total technology spend. Given these two converging trends (disaggregation of ETRM/CTRM capabilities and buyers seeking lower cost solutions), it does appear that Eka is well-positioned to enjoy continued sales success for the Digital CM Platform. In particular, the ability for customers to “right size” both their technology investment and the functional breadth of their ETRM/CTRM platform is a compelling argument for anyone seeking new or upgraded functional capabilities, even if they wish to continue to maintain their existing solutions in-place. Based on the previously discussed sales success Eka has experienced in 2018 and the compelling strategy that aligns well with the continuing technical evolution of the commodities markets, ComTech expects Eka to outperform many of their market peers in 2019. Opportunities • • • Well-positioned as an early mover in a growing market trend (Disaggregation of ETRM/CTRM capabilities) Significant sales momentum and successful implementations should drive additional opportunities As lower commodity margins are increasing market awareness and sensitivity to technology costs, Eka’s approach to delivering discrete capabilities as “apps” at a lower cost than traditional software should drive increasing market interest Risks • • • Though Eka has been an early mover in the cloud-based analytics market, new vendors are entering that market and existing vendors are building out their capabilities. This competition could drive down prices and/or slow Eka’s market momentum. The hybrid deployment model (traditional software and cloud-deployed analytics/reporting) may not appeal to some buyers Development of APIs to other vendors’ ETRM/CTRM solutions may prove difficult and negatively impact the initial value proposition for Eka’s cloud analytics solution. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ About ComTech Analyst Briefing Notes Commodity Technology Advisory (ComTech) is the leading analyst organization covering the Energy and Commodity Trading and Risk Management (E/CTRM) technology markets. We provide invaluable insights, backed by primary research and years of experience, into the issues and trends affecting both the users and providers of the applications and services that are crucial for success in markets constantly roiled by globalization, regulation and innovation. ComTech Analyst Briefing Notes are intended only to provide an overview of a technology, vendor or product of interest in the Commodity Trading and Risk Management market space. These Notes are not an endorsement of any product or vendor and should be viewed only as an additional source of information or data relating to the covered company or topic. Disclosures: At the time of this writing, Eka is a customer of Commodity Technology Advisory and the company’s management cooperated in the preparation of this ComTech Analyst Briefing Note. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 19901 Southwest Freeway Sugar Land TX 77479 [phone] Prague, Czech Republic [phone] ComTechAdvisory.com Email: [email protected] © Commodity Technology Advisory llc February 2019 3