• Cyber threats heightened during the pandemic, some even used emails offering tax refund or discount
• FMIs are now focusing on efforts to help spur global growth
• Exchanges have put in place measures to ensure robustness and security even while their staff are working remotely

Financial market infrastructure -- consisting mainly of exchanges, central counterparties (CCPs) and clearing houses -- has proven to be extremely resilient and robust during the novel coronavirus outbreak, and has emerged as one of the bright spots in the prevailing crisis.

Considering the complexities of global financial transactions today, this is no mean feat, and did not happen overnight or by coincidence. Nandini Sukumar, CEO of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) explained: “It reflects years of investment into business continuity plans (BCPs), exceptional executional capabilities and a heavy dependence on technology that have eased the situation that we find ourselves in today.”

Market infrastructures comprised some of the most critical components of the financial system that provide external sources of fundraising and finance to the real economy and enterprises that face internal capital and liquidity constraints under the current challenging conditions. They are also a vital trading, hedging and risk mitigation platform for investors, especially in times of increasing market volatility and uncertainty. Hence, they are required by regulators to have robust BCPs, and the capability to execute them well in times of exigency.

Exchanges are also among the first of the financial infrastructures to be automated and digitised with the widespread adoption of electronic trading systems and scripless trading starting in the mid-1980s, and have since been leading technological innovations such as the introduction of low latency and high frequency networks.

Ensuring cyber security

The safe ...

Categories:

Keywords: