Major reform is sweeping across the financial markets as the industry faces up to outdated regimes and some firms have already completely rethought and reengineered their business models. Nowhere is the revolution more apparent than in post-trade.
Major reform is sweeping across the financial markets as the industry faces up to outdated regimes and some firms have already completely rethought and reengineered their business models. Nowhere is the revolution more apparent than in post-trade.
The economics of the financial industry are different now. Increasing regulatory demands and scarcity of capital mean that traditional ways of working are no longer sustainable. Simply finding cheaper versions of the same operating models will not deliver the real cost savings that firms require. Major reform is sweeping across the financial markets as the industry faces up to outdated regimes and some firms have already completely rethought and reengineered their business models.
Nowhere is this revolution more apparent than in post-trade.
Exposing the inefficiencies in post-trade
The post-trade space has traditionally been dominated by third party, centralised systems based on out-dated technology and manual processes. The inevitable inefficiencies have, for a long time, been accepted. This is particularly the case for affirmations and confirmations - a vital function in the trade life cycle. As long as processes were delivering for the most part, there was no imperative for radical change.
Instead, firms have layered on more people, money and quick fix solutions. On the buy-side, this has resulted in a mesh of complex internal controls over crucial business processes.
With these approaches teetering on the edge of operational capacity there is little or no room to accommodate further pressures. New pressures have arrived, though. Greater regulation, intense cost scrutiny and the shortening of settlement cycles are all exposing just how delicate the post-trade infrastructure is and highlighting that old ways simply won't cut it.