For anyone looking to better understand trading systems, the FIX Protocol website is an outstanding resource. In addition to specific technical documentation on the FIX messaging protocol (the industry standard for sending financial messages between organizations), they have some excellent overview and descriptive content about the market as a whole.

One such example is this article from the “FIX Protocol Implementation Guide”, entitled The FIX process for fixed income. It’s the best description I’ve seen of the actual message flow and business process, in general terms, for various types of fixed income trades and instruments. Well worth a read for anyone starting out in the field.