They might not hold a crystal ball, but the senior executives at the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) are probably in the best position to tell us what 2024 might hold for US’ post trade space. In an end-of-year message shared with the media, they gave a snapshot of the anticipated trends, as well as their predictions and focuses for 2024. Here’s a hint: we are hearing a lot about T+1, blockchains, resilience, and the meeting of traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralised finance (DeFi).
For Brian Steele, president of Clearing and Securities Services, T+1 is top of mind. He said that the shortening of the settlement cycle, along with the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) recent decision to expand central clearing for US treasuries, means that the industry has to “prepare for important changes to US market structure”. Michele Hillery, general manager of the National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC)’s Equity Clearing and the Depository Trust Company’s (DTC) Settlement Service is in agreement, and urged all firms that have not tested their T+1 readiness to start now.
Chief information officer Lynn Bishop revealed that the DTCC has conducted a number of proofs of concepts on AI technologies and will be prioritising work in this space with the organisation’s recently established AI Advisory Group. Jennifer Peve, global head of strategy and innovation, is looking forward to innovation and progress in the DeFi space, while Nadine Chakar, the global head of DTCC Digital Assets, believes that the DTCC’s recent acquisition of Securrency will “usher in a transformative era for financial markets”. “Cross-chain interoperability and the establishment of industry standards will remain critical enablers for sustaining the emerging digital asset ecosystem,” she says.
