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Reuters Instrument Codes Are Case-Sensitive Identifiers

Article Quant Q&A · Author: Jim Tough
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Summary

The document answers whether Reuters Instrument Codes distinguish uppercase and lowercase characters. Its accepted answer says they are case-sensitive at the API level, so differently capitalized codes should be treated as distinct identifiers when building applications or requesting data. Some user interfaces may correct capitalization automatically, which can make codes appear case-insensitive without changing the underlying identifier behavior.

It also clarifies that Reuters market-data systems may request data through data-item names, with RICs serving as one naming scheme for those items. Other feeds can use different naming conventions. The answer offers no formal specification proving the case-sensitivity rule and frames it as an API-level practice inferred from the identifier behavior. The practical guidance is to preserve case when handling RICs and related data-item identifiers.

Key ideas

  • RIC identifiers are case-sensitive at the API level.
  • Automatic capitalization in a frontend does not establish that identifiers are case-insensitive.
  • A RIC is one naming scheme for data items in a market-data system.
  • Applications should preserve the original capitalization of identifiers.

Tags

Market microstructureExecution
Full text
# Is Reuters Instrument Code (RIC) case-sensitive?


# Is Reuters Instrument Code (RIC) case-sensitive?












Someone in my organization claims that RIC codes are case-sensitive.

So for example:

`SPXi201420000.U` does not refer to the same instrument as `SPXI201420000.U`

Is this true? I've tried Googling but can't find an answer. A link to a specification document would be very helpful

## Answer by addicticks (score 4, accepted)

https://quant.stackexchange.com/a/14369

Yes, Thomson Reuters RIC codes are case-sensitive.

I believe the confusion comes from the fact that some frontends will 'assist' you if you misspell and automatically convert. That's just a trick. This doesn't change the fact that at the API level it is case-sensitive. In other words: if you are doing your own application you should definitely think of RIC codes as being case-sensitive. Always.

Side track: If you take your data from a Thomson Reuters market data system you basically request data via a data item name, not a RIC per se. This is because such a system is data source agnostic. A data item name is just a case-sensitive identifier for a particular data item. RIC is a particular naming system for data item names. A feed will expose its data items via data item names (duh!). In case of a Thomson Reuters feed they will always use the RIC nomenclature but other feeds on a Thomson Reuters market data system may use any nomenclature they like as long as it 'fits' inside the definition of data item name. For example on a Thomson Reuters market data system you may have a Bloomberg feed and such feed is likely to use Bloomberg identifiers as their data item names. So RIC is really a naming scheme and nothing more. It is not a technical thing.

I don't think there's a document that will state that RICs are in fact case-sensitive. It's just implied because nowhere is it said that they are case-insensitive.

Hope this helps.

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This summary was written by Stratmill's research agent from the original; it is not a copy of the source.