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{{Short description|Computer software terminal made by Bloomberg LP}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2016}}
{{Infobox software
| name = Bloomberg Terminal
| logo = 
| screenshot = Bloomberg Terminal Museum.jpg
| screenshot alt = A photograph of a two-monitor computer display open to the Bloomberg Terminal, along with its custom keyboard
| caption = A Bloomberg Terminal on display at [[Bloomberg L.P.]]
| developer = [[Bloomberg L.P.]]
| released = December 1982
| latest_release_version = 
| latest_release_date = 
| operating_system = [[Microsoft Windows]]<br/>Other systems (using [[Citrix Receiver]])
| genre = [[Electronic trading platform]]<br/>[[Financial software]]
| license = [[Proprietary software|Proprietary]]
| website = {{Official website|https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/}}
}}
{{Michael Bloomberg series}}
The '''Bloomberg Terminal''' is a computer software system provided by the [[financial data vendor]] [[Bloomberg L.P.]] that enables professionals in the financial service sector and other industries to access Bloomberg Professional Services through which users can monitor and analyze real-time financial [[market data]] and place trades on the [[electronic trading platform]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/ | work=Bloomberg | title=Bloomberg Professional Services | access-date=February 27, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305095331/https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/ | archive-date=March 5, 2017 | url-status=live }}</ref> It was developed by employees working for businessman [[Michael Bloomberg]]. The system also provides news, price quotes, and messaging across its proprietary secure network. It is well known among the financial community for its [[Light-on-dark color scheme|black interface]], which has become a recognizable trait of the service.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://uxmag.com/articles/the-impossible-bloomberg-makeover|title=The Impossible Bloomberg Makeover|last=Leca|first=Dominique|website=UX|date=March 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170516020445/http://uxmag.com/articles/the-impossible-bloomberg-makeover|archive-date=May 16, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>  The first version of the terminal was released in December 1982.

Most large financial firms have subscriptions to Bloomberg Professional Services. Many exchanges charge their own additional fees for access to real time price feeds across the terminal. The same applies to various news organizations. All Bloomberg Terminals are leased in two-year cycles (in the late 1990s and early 2000s, three-year contracts were an option), with leases originally based on how many displays were connected to each terminal (this predated the move to a Windows-based application). Most Bloomberg setups have between two and six displays. As a [[data analysis|data analytics]] and [[electronic trading platform]], the Bloomberg terminal is available for an annual fee of around $24k per user or $27k per year for subscribers that use only one terminal.<ref name="investopedia">{{Cite web | url=https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/bloomberg_terminal.asp| title=This is how much a Bloomberg terminal costs| first=Will| last=Kenton| date=July 29, 2022| work=[[Investopedia]]}}</ref> As of 2022, there were 325,000 Bloomberg Terminal subscribers worldwide.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/company/|title=Bloomberg company information|work=Bloomberg|access-date=October 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161013023013/https://www.bloomberg.com/company/|archive-date=October 13, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

== History ==
In 1981, [[Michael Bloomberg]] was fired from [[Salomon Brothers]]. He was given no [[severance package]], but owned $10 million worth of equity as a [[Partner (business rank)|partner]] at the firm.<ref>{{Cite interview |title=Michael Bloomberg on How to Succeed in Business |last=Bloomberg |first=Michael |interviewer=Sam Roberts |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/01/education/edlife/mike-bloomberg-salomon-brothers.html |date=2017-02-01 |subject-link=Michael Bloomberg |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> Using this money, Bloomberg, having designed in-house computerized financial systems for Salomon, set up a data services company named Innovative Market Systems (IMS) based on his belief that Wall Street would pay a premium for high-quality business information, delivered instantly on computer terminals in a variety of usable formats.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DsJn4397J1cC&pg=PA26 |page=26 |title=The Battle for Wall Street: Behind the Lines in the Struggle that Pushed an Industry into Turmoil |isbn=9780470446812 |last1=Goldberg |first1=Richard |date=January 23, 2009 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons }}</ref> The company sold customized [[computer terminal]]s that delivered real-time market data, financial calculations and other analytics to Wall Street firms. At first, the machine was called the Market Master terminal, but later became known as the Bloomberg Terminal<ref name="Fast Company">{{cite news|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/3051883/the-bloomberg-terminal|title=How the Bloomberg Terminal Made History—And Stays Ever Relevant|website=Fast Company|date=October 6, 2015|first=Harry|last=McCracken|access-date=February 27, 2020}}</ref> or simply "The Bloomberg." The terminal was released to market in December 1982.<ref name="Fast Company" /> [[Merrill Lynch]] became the company's first customer, purchasing a 30% stake in IMS for $30 million in exchange for a five-year restriction on marketing the terminals to Merrill Lynch's competitors.<ref name="Make It New">{{cite book|last=Bodine|first=Paul|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9G-FWJIAOSEC&pg=PA182 |title=Make It New: Essays in the History of American Business|publisher=iUniverse|year=2004|isbn=9780595309214|pages=182|access-date=February 27, 2020}}{{self-published source|date=June 2022}}</ref> In 1984, Merrill Lynch released IMS from the restriction.<ref name="Make It New" />

In 1990, the Bloomberg keyboard was released with a trackball and built-in voice-chat features. In 1991, the first color edition of the terminal was released.

Michael Bloomberg stepped away from working on the terminal in 2001 to run for New York City mayor, but returned to lead the project in 2014. Starting in 2012, Bloomberg Terminal had a greater annual revenue than [[Thomson Reuters]], the company that founded the market data business.<ref name="Vox">{{cite news |last1=Stewart |first1=Emily |title=How Mike Bloomberg made his billions: a computer system you've probably never seen |url=https://www.vox.com/2020-presidential-election/2019/12/11/21005008/michael-bloomberg-terminal-net-worth-2020 |access-date=24 December 2019 |work=Vox |date=11 December 2019 |language=en}}</ref>

Currently, the hardware aspect of the terminal is only a series of accessories. Some of those accessories are a custom keyboard with special keys, a fingerprint scanner, and a dual-screen display.<ref name="TerminalHistory">{{cite news |last1=McCracken |first1=Harry |title=How the Bloomberg Terminal Made History–And Stays Ever Relevant |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/3051883/the-bloomberg-terminal |access-date=2 December 2019 |work=Fast Company |date=6 October 2015}}</ref>

== Pricing ==
Sales from the Bloomberg terminal account for more than 85 percent of Bloomberg L.P.'s annual revenue.<ref name="Inside the Bloomberg Machine">{{cite web |title=Inside the Bloomberg Machine |access-date=October 27, 2011 |url=http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/trading-technology/229400082 |publisher=Wall Street and Technology |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120105091916/http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/trading-technology/229400082 |archive-date=January 5, 2012 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> The [[financial data vendor]]'s proprietary computer system starts at $30,000 per user per year.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.neugroup.com/bloomberg-terminal-inflation-9-price-hike-on-jan-1-2023/ | title=Bloomberg Terminal Inflation: ~9% Price Hike on Jan. 1, 2023 | date=August 26, 2022 }}</ref>

== Architecture ==
[[File:Bunit.jpg|thumb|With a "B-unit" as a portable alternative to the fingerprint scanner on a Bloomberg custom keyboard, users can remotely access Bloomberg Anywhere services from any computer (both PCs and Mac devices) via the internet.]]
The terminal implements a client-server architecture with the server running on a multiprocessor [[Unix]] platform. The client, used by end users to interact with the system, is a [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] application that typically connects directly through a router provided by Bloomberg and installed on-site. End users can also make use of an extra service (''Bloomberg Anywhere'') to allow the Windows application to connect via internet/IP, or Web access via a [[Citrix]] client. There are also applications that allow mobile access via [[Android (operating system)|Android]] and [[iOS (Apple)|iOS]]. The server side of the terminal was originally developed using mostly the  [[Fortran]] and [[C (programming language)|C]] [[programming language]]s. Recent years have seen a transition towards [[C++]] and embedded [[JavaScript]] on the clients and servers.

Each server machine runs multiple instances of the server process. Using a proprietary form of [[Context switch|context-switching]], the servers keep track of the state of each end user, allowing consecutive interactions from a single user to be handled by different server processes. The [[graphical user interface]] (GUI) code is also proprietary.

== Keyboard ==
{{How-to|section|date=December 2023}}
[[File:Bloomberg Terminal Keyboard.svg|500px]]

[[Michael Bloomberg]]'s 1997 autobiography contains a chapter entitled "Computers for Virgins", which explains the differences in the design of the terminal and its keyboard from the standard [[IBM PC keyboard]] layout that was popular at that time. The terminal's keyboard layout was designed for traders and market makers who had no prior computer experience. The look and feel of the Bloomberg keyboard are similar to an ordinary computer keyboard, with several enhancements which help users navigate through the system.

Keyboard keys are commonly referred to inside angle brackets with full commands being contained in curly brackets  e.g., {VOD LN {{key press|Equity}} {{key press|GO}}}. The function key names and then-standard beige colour of an ordinary keyboard were changed from the technical name, e.g., F10, to a memorable name and colour, e.g., ''Yellow''. The F10 key is thus a ''Yellow'' key named {{key press|Index}}. The {{key press|Esc}} is coloured red and named {{key press|Cancel}} in the Bloomberg system, with the red to catch one's eye to stop a task. The {{key press|Enter}} key is referred to as {{key press|GO}} with a green color, deriving from the ''Monopoly'' game board, by passing ''Go'' and collecting $200 in a hope that the user could make money on the information he would find.<ref>''Bloomberg by Bloomberg'', Michael R. Bloomberg 1997</ref>

The Bloomberg keyboard includes a unique {{key press|Menu}} key which navigates back to the previous function used.  If no previous commands are found, {{key press|Menu}} displays a list of related functions.  Similarly, the {{key press|History}} key will populate the command-line with previously used functions in reverse chronological order, as the {{key press|Up}} key function does in certain command prompts.

The yellow hotkeys along the top of the keyboard are used to enter market sectors, and are generally used as suffixes to allow the terminal to correctly identify a security.

[[File:Bloomberg terminal keyboard.jpg|thumb|An early 2000s Bloomberg terminal keyboard]]

* F2 GOVT – [[government securities]] (U.S. treasury and non-U.S.)
* F3 CORP – [[corporate debt]]
* F4 MTGE – [[mortgage securities]]
* F5 M-Mkt – [[money market]]
* F6 MUNI – [[municipal debt]]
* F7 PFD – [[preferred shares]]
* F8 EQUITY – [[equity shares]]
* F9 COMDTY – [[commodity markets]]
* F10 INDEX – [[Index (economics)|indices]]
* F11 CURNCY – [[currency markets]]
* F12 CLIENT/ALPHA – portfolio functionality

For example, if someone is interested in the [[Vodafone]] stock listed on the [[London Stock Exchange|London market]], one enters {<kbd>VOD</kbd> <kbd>LN</kbd> {{key press|Equity}} {{key press|GO}}} where VOD is the company's [[ticker symbol]], LN is the venue code for London, and {{key press|Equity}} is the market sector. A detailed option list related to Vodafone UK stock will pop up, the person can then choose different options by pressing related keys or using the mouse to select the option.

Similarly, {<kbd>USDEUR</kbd> {{key press|Curncy}} {{key press|GO}}} displays the U.S. dollar–[[Euro]] [[exchange rate|exchange]] [[spot rate]].

Other common Bloomberg commands for Equity include:

* {HP {{key press|GO}}} – Historical Price – Display the detailed historical price of the currently loaded stock
* {DVD {{key press|GO}}} – Dividend / Split Summary of the currently loaded stock
* {CACS {{key press|GO}}} – [[Corporate action|Corporate Actions]] related to the currently loaded stock
* {CN {{key press|GO}}} – Company News – News related to the currently loaded stock

Thus, if someone interested in the historical Vodafone UK stock price, they can directly type in {<kbd>VOD</kbd> <kbd>LN</kbd> {{key press|Equity}} <kbd>HP</kbd> {{key press|GO}}}.

The Bloomberg keyboard has traditionally been heavier and sturdier than standard keyboards (a previous version, the SEA100 Bloomberg keyboard weighed around 3&nbsp;kg) with 3mm key travel and 19mm key pitch; it also comes with built-in speakers for multimedia features. The SEA100 version has a built-in, 500 PPI, 0.26 sq inch biometric sensor for user login verification.  The current Starboard (Keyboard 4) version is 1.08&nbsp;kg and uses flatter, chiclet-style keys which are quieter and have less key travel than Freeboard (Keyboard 3) and prior.
{{Bloomberg keys}}

== Terminal and related products ==
Originally a self-contained operating system running on custom hardware commonly referred to as a ''Bloomberg Box'',<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lowry |first=Tom |title=The Bloomberg Machine |newspaper=[[BusinessWeek]] |publisher=[[McGraw-Hill]] |date=April 23, 2001 |url=http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/01_17/b3729001.htm |access-date=October 23, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091022082539/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/01_17/b3729001.htm |archive-date=October 22, 2009 |df=mdy }}</ref> the Bloomberg Terminal now functions as an application within the Windows environment.  From a user's perspective, there are essentially three distinct levels to the system:

=== Core Terminal ===
''Core Terminal'' is the original Bloomberg system; typically consisting of four windows, or ''Panels'', each Panel contains a separate instance of the terminal command line. As the user enters tickers and functions, they can call up and display the real-time data of the market, with each different screen simultaneously running a program to analyze other tickers, functions, values and markets in real time.  This use of multiple screens with user-demanded, specific pieces of differing data—across all relevant markets—allows the user to view diverse and countless volumes of information in real-time.  Accessing market data, as it develops, allows the user to make trades and investments in all markets across the world, without having any lag in information.  Users can run all four windows on a single monitor or spread them out amongst many monitors, maximizing the information shown on each, to effectually create up to four terminals.

In February 2012, Bloomberg LP publicly announced an upgrade to the Terminal called ''Bloomberg NEXT''. The stated goals of this multi-year, $100 million project were to improve the discoverability and usability of the Core Terminal's functionality.<ref>{{cite news|last=Edgecliffe-Johnson|first=Andrew|title=Bloomberg to reveal data service redesign|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8f429986-6093-11e1-af75-00144feabdc0.html|access-date=April 15, 2012|newspaper=Financial Times|date=February 27, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402213845/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8f429986-6093-11e1-af75-00144feabdc0.html|archive-date=April 2, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Launchpad ===
Launchpad is a customizable display consisting of a number of smaller windows, called ''components'', each dedicated to permanently displaying one set of data. A typical user would be a stockbroker who wishes to keep a list of 30 stocks visible at all times: Launchpad allows the user to create a small component which will show these prices constantly, saving the user from having to check each stock independently in the 4 terminal windows. To turn on Launchpad the command {BLP {{key press|GO}}} is used, {PDFB {{key press|GO}}} allows users to set Lpad to open automatically on login. Older keyboards had an <Lpad> key which replicated the {BLP {{key press|GO}}} command. Other functions, such as email inboxes, calculation tools and news tickers can be similarly displayed. The Instant Bloomberg messaging/chat tool is a Launchpad component, as are the chat windows it creates. To launch a normal function from the Bloomberg Terminal's 4 Screens into launchpad type {LLP{{key press|GO}}} from the target screen you wish to turn into a launchpad item.

=== Application programming interface ===
The Bloomberg Open API (BLPAPI) [[application programming interface]] (API) allows [[Third-party software component|third-party]] applications, such as [[Microsoft Excel]], to access Bloomberg data via the Terminal and Bloomberg's market data products. A user might wish to use Bloomberg data from the Terminal to create their own calculations; by accessing streaming, historical, and reference market data from another program, they can build these formulae. The Bloomberg Terminal installation ships with Excel add-ins which facilitate building spreadsheets which consume market data.<ref>{{cite news|title=Bloomberg Software Support|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/software_support/|publisher=Bloomberg L.P.|access-date=May 20, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517004815/http://www.bloomberg.com/professional/software_support/|archive-date=May 17, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> In addition, Bloomberg offers free BLPAPI SDKs allowing Bloomberg subscribers to build their own software which accesses market data in [[Wolfram Language]], [[C (programming language)|C]], [[C++]], [[Java (programming language)|Java]], [[.NET Framework|.NET]], [[Perl]], and [[Python (programming language)|Python]], on [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]], [[Linux]], [[macOS]], and [[Solaris (operating system)|Solaris]].<ref name=open_api>{{cite web |title=Open API |url=http://www.openbloomberg.com/open-api/ |publisher=Bloomberg L.P. |access-date=May 20, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512182932/http://www.openbloomberg.com/open-api/ |archive-date=May 12, 2012 |df=mdy }}</ref>

=== Financial Instrument Global Identifier ===
In September 2021, Bloomberg earned regulatory approval for its [[Financial Instrument Global Identifier]] (FIGI), a 12-character alphanumerical, open standard, unique identifier for financial instruments that may be attached to common [[equities]], [[Option (finance)|options]], [[Derivative (finance)|derivatives]], [[Futures contract|futures]], [[Corporate bond|corporate bonds]], [[sovereign bonds]], [[Municipal bond|municipal bonds]], [[currencies]], and [[Mortgage-backed security|mortgage products]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-09-15 |title=After lengthy fight, Bloomberg's Figi recognized as official US data standard |url=https://www.waterstechnology.com/node/7877101 |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=WatersTechnology.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-10-01 |title=Bloomberg's FIGI: A Case of Red Light, Green Light |url=https://www.waterstechnology.com/node/7690251 |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=WatersTechnology.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Bloomberg Promotes FIGI as Primary Global Security Identifier – A Team | date=September 18, 2014 |url=https://a-teaminsight.com/bloomberg-promotes-figi-as-primary-global-security-identifier/?brand=ati |access-date=2022-05-02 |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-10-04 |title=Waters Wrap: On Refinitiv and Old Rivalries (And FIGI & Data Governance) |url=https://www.waterstechnology.com/node/7692821 |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=WatersTechnology.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-12-07 |title=OMG Adopts FIGI Identifier Standard |url=https://www.waterstechnology.com/node/2437989 |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=WatersTechnology.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-02-10 |title=One view to rule them all: Buy side firms seek to unify their data |url=https://www.waterstechnology.com/node/7928511 |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=WatersTechnology.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-10-05 |title=Bloomberg's FIGIs Win Nod From US Standards Body: Now What? {{!}} FinOps |url=https://finopsinfo.com/operations/bloombergs-figis-win-nod-from-us-standards-body-now-what/,%20https://finopsinfo.com/operations/bloombergs-figis-win-nod-from-us-standards-body-now-what/ |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=finopsinfo.com |language=en-US}}</ref> This was previously known as the Bloomberg Global Identifier and was introduced in 2009. Once issued, a FIGI number is never reused. There are unique FIGIs that identify securities as well as the individual exchanges on which they trade. There are also composite FIGIs that may be used to represent unique securities across related exchanges, although unique FIGIs would be used to identify common stock on an individual exchange. The FIGI structure is defined and copyrighted by the Object Management Group. Unique FIGIs are published by Bloomberg L.P. It's a competitor to the [[CUSIP]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bailey |first=Doug |date=2022-03-25 |title=How CUSIP numbers became a Wall Street battleground |url=https://www.businessofbusiness.com/articles/curious-story-how-cusip-numbers-became-a-wall-street-battleground/ |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=www.businessofbusiness.com |language=en}}</ref>

=== Legal Entity Identifiers ===
In April 2022, Bloomberg released the [[Common Data Format]] 3.1 for [[Legal Entity Identifier]]s (LEIs) and received accreditation as an LEI issuer for funds, a move which would allow firms to better understand their exposure to different types of legal entities and meet regulatory requirements.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lomax |first=Jenna |title=Bloomberg releases New Common Data Format for LEIs |url=https://www.assetservicingtimes.com/assetservicesnews/article.php?article_id=12952 |access-date=2022-05-02 |work=Asset Servicing Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=dan.barnes |date=2022-04-29 |title=Bloomberg releases new Common Data Format for legal entity identifiers |url=https://www.fi-desk.com/bloomberg-releases-new-common-data-format-for-legal-entity-identifiers/ |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=The DESK - Fixed Income Trading |language=en-GB}}</ref> Like the FIGI, the LEI is managed under the Open Symbology unit of Bloomberg.

== Competitors ==
{{Details|Financial data vendor}}
The largest competitor to the Bloomberg Terminal is [[Refinitiv]] with its [[Eikon]] offering, formerly owned by [[Thomson Reuters]]. Bloomberg and Thomson Reuters split the market with a share of 30% each in 2011. This was a major improvement for Bloomberg as the share in 2007 was Bloomberg's 26% to Reuters' 36%.

Other major competitors include [[Money.Net]], [[SIX Financial Information]], [[Markit Group|Markit]], [[FactSet Research Systems]], [[Capital IQ]], [[Fidessa]] and [[Dow Jones and Company|Dow Jones]]. According to Burton-Taylor International Consulting,<ref>{{cite news|last=Flamm|first=Matthew|title=Bloomberg LP beats Thomson Reuters|url=http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20120223/MEDIA_ENTERTAINMENT/120229958|access-date=April 15, 2012|newspaper=Crain's New York Business|date=February 23, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120707051802/http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20120223/MEDIA_ENTERTAINMENT/120229958|archive-date=July 7, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> the market for financial data and analytics was worth almost $25&nbsp;billion {{as of|2011|lc=on}}.

== See also ==
* [[Bloomberg L.P.]]
* [[Bloomberg News]]
* [[Financial data vendor]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Bloomberg Terminal}}
* {{Official website|https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/}} Bloomberg Professional Services
* [https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/blog/look-back-bloomberg-keyboard/ Bloomberg Terminal keyboards from 1983 to present]

{{Bloomberg}}

[[Category:1982 software]]
[[Category:Bloomberg L.P.|Terminal]]
[[Category:Electronic trading systems]]
[[Category:Financial software]]