Designing a Fintech Platform for Japan's Institutional Equity Market
UI/UX for an encrypted block trade matching platform for Japan's institutional equity market.
THE SITUATION
Block trading in Japan had a structural problem: when institutional investors signaled intent to buy or sell a large position, that information spread uncontrollably through brokers, Bloomberg, and email chains — moving the market before the order was ever filled.
Authentic Indication was built to fix that. Founded by Gordon Niamatali, who had spent 18 years at Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Japan — the platform lets institutional investors search for block liquidity through an encrypted matching engine that exposes nothing to either side until both confirm a match. Not even the platform itself can see unmatched IOIs.
I was brought in as lead product designer to build the full UI/UX from the ground up, along with a backend system not pictured.
SCOPE DELIVERED
Full UI/UX design — frontend and backend dashboard panels
IOI creation flow (single and bulk)
IOI Summary dashboard with multi-state management
Match flow — Match Found, Accept, Decline, Cancelled states
Bulk Upload flow with inline CSV validation
Credibility rating system UI
Prototyping for broker testing sessions and investor/client demonstrations
ROLE
Lead Product Designer (UI/UX) Working directly with CEO Gordon Niamatali, internal software engineers, and project manager
CLIENT
Authentic Indication
TIMELINE
2022 — 2023
THE WORK
The Core Interface — Search, Create, Send
The entry point is deliberately minimal: a single search bar, a credibility score, a Bulk Upload button.
Upon loading / searching for stocks, institutional users under time pressure don't need a dashboard that announces itself — they need to move fast. From search, an IOI is created with a Buy/Sell toggle, quantity input, and dual-currency notional display in both USD and JPY. Three expandable tabs, Price Conditions, Advertising Preferences, and Path Preferences let users set advertising triggers, cancel triggers, index-relative cancels, credibility filters, duration, and broker priority rankings before sending.
Every design decision was in service of reducing friction at the moment that mattered: when a trader had a block to move and seconds to decide.
The IOI Summary Dashboard — Managing Multiple Positions
Institutional users managing multiple active IOIs simultaneously needed a single view that told the whole story at a glance. The IOI Summary dashboard presents all active positions in a table with color-coded Buy/Sell indicators, real-time status badges (Sent, Paused, Cancelled, Complete, Accept/Decline), time remaining, quantity remaining, and percentage remaining. Bulk selection allows Cancel, Pause, or Send actions across multiple IOIs simultaneously. When a match notification arrives, the relevant row surfaces an Accept/Decline prompt inline — keeping the user's attention on the match without pulling them out of their full portfolio view.
The Match Flow — Designing for Time Pressure
The most consequential moment in the platform is the match notification. Both sides have a 30-second window to accept or decline before the match expires. The Match Found popup surfaces with a clear amber alert, shows the matched quantity, minimum quantity, counterparty credibility score, and a countdown timer — with Accept and Decline as the only available actions. If both accept, the Match Accepted screen delivers the mid-price, match time, executing broker, and a one-click Copy Details function for the trader to relay to their desk. If either side declines, a red IOI Cancelled confirmation closes the loop cleanly.
The entire flow was prototyped and tested with potential broker users before launch — the designs were used directly in demonstrations and presentations to institutional clients.
Bulk Upload — For High-Volume Operators
Users managing large portfolios needed to be able to upload multiple IOIs at once via CSV. The Bulk Upload flow handles drag-and-drop file submission, then presents a confirmation screen that validates each line — flagging securities below minimum quantity thresholds or unrecognized tickers inline, with a clear count of how many could not be uploaded and instructions to resolve. Clean, no ambiguity.
The Credibility System — Trust Made Visual
Authentic Indication's credibility rating system is central to how the platform works: users who genuinely trade improve their rating over time; users who extract information without trading see it fall. This rating is visible throughout the interface — in the header, in the IOI Summary table's left-side indicator, and in the Advertising Preferences tab where users set the minimum credibility threshold for counterparties. Making an abstract trust score feel legible and persistent without becoming distracting was one of the more considered design challenges in the product.
A Cultural Thread
The platform was built for Japanese institutional investors operating in the Tokyo equity market. The seigaiha wave pattern, a classic Japanese motif, runs subtly through the background of every screen. It's not decorative for its own sake: it grounds the product visually, nods to its Tokyo roots, and offers an additional nod to Blue Ocean Strategy.
A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT
All design work was produced in direct collaboration with CEO Gordon Niamatali, the engineering team, and the project manager. Gordon brought 18 years of institutional equity execution experience to every product decision — my role was to translate that depth of domain knowledge into a UI that traders could use as a daily tool.
WHAT THIS REINFORCED
Fintech product design isn't just about making complex things look clean. It's about making complex things feel trustworthy under pressure. Every state in this platform: sent, paused, matched, declined, cancelled represents a real decision made day to day.
CarmelloVision is a Tokyo-based digital partner for companies expanding between Japan and global markets. Founder Shane Allen combines cross-cultural UX strategy, design execution, and over a decade of experience working inside Japanese and global teams to help brands navigate unfamiliar markets and build meaningful connections across cultures.
