By Cardiff Smith, General Manager, Customer and Technical Operations, ASX
Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) is spearheading a series of interconnected technology projects aimed at boosting standardisation and operational efficiency. The recent ASX Technical & Operational Forum was a comprehensive update on these initiatives, emphasising the long-term shift towards a regular cadence of releases.
ASX Chief Operating Officer, Diona Rae, thanked the markets community for making the time to come together for this event.
“Our events are a success thanks to the support we get from companies and investors and we appreciate all the input we receive as we go through each project,” she said.
During the forum Andrew Walton, General Manager of Trading at ASX, gave an update on ASX Trade Service Release 15 (SR15) and ASX 24 Service Release 4 (SR4), which are part of a broader program aimed at enhancing the trading platform’s resilience. Improvements include removing the staggered open auction, introducing a post-close trading session and simplifying block and late trades.
“We are looking to standardise where we can, moving away from bespoke proprietary technology and trading methods,” he said.
Timing is crucial, with progressive drops into test environments next year. ASX is closely monitoring feedback and is prepared to adjust if necessary. Next steps involve testing and providing detailed documentation and support.
Tracy Nicol, Program Director at ASX, delivered an update on SR4, which involves a small service release around the bond futures contract for the ASX 24 platform. ASX is in the process of evaluating replacement options for this technology.
“We are looking to retire the existing platform and move towards a more strategic solution that aligns with our long-term goals,” Nicol said.
Nick Rakebrandt, Head of Enterprise and Customer Networks at ASX, gave a comprehensive update on network infrastructure upgrades, emphasising the importance of these enhancements in supporting broader service releases.
“Our focus has been on improving service resiliency, enhancing security and ensuring efficient lifecycle management,” he said. The upgrades are designed to minimise the impact on market participants, while providing robust support for trading activities.
The network upgrade includes a new trading Wide Area Network (WAN) and the introduction of WAN encryption and server gateways to bolster security. The exchange is also moving towards new multicast market data and order entry access, which will significantly improve the efficiency and reliability of trading platforms.
Rakebrandt discussed physical infrastructure changes, such as the shift to single-mode fibre and the adoption of Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) routing. These changes will provide a more stable and high-performance network backbone and upgrades are on track.
Ben Jackson, General Manager of Market Operations at ASX, delivered a detailed overview of the new ASX Trade Failover and Recovery Guide. The guide provides outlines of what happens in the event of a market failure, along with actions to address outages. The document covers market communication, functionality availability, architecture resiliency, gateway failure and recovery, as well as examples of disruption scenarios.
The guide offers detailed outlines of the session states used during disruptions: inquire, adjust and cancel only. These states help manage the market during outages. “The new cancel only session state allows participants to cancel orders while we assess the situation,” Jackson added.
A ‘Done for the Day’ assessment protocol has been introduced to streamline decision-making during outages. Under the protocol, ASX will meet every 45 minutes to decide whether to continue attempts to resolve the issue or declare the day done. This protocol was not in place during the November 2020 outage, which highlighted the need for a structured approach to managing disruptions.
Sascha Chandler, Program Director of Derivatives and Clearing Services at ASX, updated the audience on the Clearstar program to modernise ASX’s clearing infrastructure, improve operational efficiency and enhance risk management capabilities. The program has made significant strides in upgrading the technology stack and streamlining processes to support a more robust clearing environment.
“We have focused on ensuring that our systems are user-friendly and efficient,” Chandler said.
Looking ahead, the Clearstar program will include further upgrades to risk management capabilities, expanded product offerings and improved service delivery.
The session was rounded out by an update from CHESS General Manager, Andrew Jones, on the CHESS Replacement Project. The first phase, scheduled for early 2026, will remove capacity constraints in the current CHESS system by introducing a new clearing system.
“This new system will bring scalability, supportability, better security and a new gateway for approved market operators,” Jones explained.
The second phase, set for 2029, will introduce significant functional improvements and changes to the settlement and sub-registry functions.
This phase will impact all clearing and settlement participants, registries and other market participants. The new system will enable interoperability, allowing for the integration of different clearinghouses, settlement facilities and sub-registries. It will also provide better data access through APIs and support a regular cadence of releases for continuous market improvement.
Jones discussed the project’s timeline and major milestones. “We have completed consultations for both releases and are now working towards industry testing,” he said.
These initiatives collectively underscore ASX’s commitment to enhancing its trading infrastructure and set the foundations for the exchange’s future success.
The event concluded with a well-attended end-of-year networking function to round off a busy year.
If you would like to view the slides from this event or the customer impact plan, they are available here – https://www.asx.com.au/content/dam/asx/documents/webinars/tech-ops-impact-plan-dec-24.pdf
The recording is also available here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XVDC3b7_AA
