Many see a long-standing problem in financial markets of structural rigidity, with each new challenge or regulation triggering a surge of new vendor products, platforms, or solutions. While a more diverse trading, execution, and settlement landscape offers potential benefits like competition, cost efficiency, and choice, it may also increase a splintering of markets. This fragmentation can trap liquidity, hinder efficiency, and ultimately raise costs for everyone involved.

As many jurisdictions continue to intensify the focus on growth, not least the Capital Markets Union initiative in Europe, regulators and policy makers recognise competitiveness and ability to scale, resilience, and efficiency as core pillars to a more integrated capital markets eco-system. That focus alongside the exponential growth in digital solutions surely makes this the moment to take stock and understand why legacy challenges, like the nirvana that is ‘interoperability’, are still not a reality.

This year’s conference agenda will explore past and present paradigms, how a failure to address fundamental inefficiencies may inhibit the desired future state, the potential convergence of accelerated settlement and digital evolution, and why are we not seeing widespread adoption of market standards – the low-hanging fruit that so many are talking about.

ISLA will be delivering its Annual Post Trade Conference on 6 November 2024, held in London as a one day conference.

This years event will once again be focused primarily at groups and individuals involved in the daily operation and post trade flows associated with the securities finance business.

View the latest agenda.